Recently, in a major announcement regarding the criteria of postgraduate and PG diploma medical seats, this year, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has reduced the eligibility to zero percentile. Under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the MCC is responsible for the allocation of post-graduate medical education seats through the NEET PG exam and has eradicated the eligibility cut-off. The development has generated mixed reactions with a section supporting the move, and another criticising it. “As promised, the good news is here! We welcome the decision of the Ministry of Health to make everyone eligible for the remaining rounds of counselling for NEETPG2023,” the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) wrote on social media platform X. On the other hand, the Federation of All India Medical Association wrote on X, “We are shocked to see such a notice released by the Ministry of Health regarding the NEET PG cut-off. It is ridiculous to see zero percentile candidates are eligible for getting a postgraduate seat. This is a mockery of the standard of Medical Education and the healthcare system.”
“The vacant seats may result from a lack of eligible candidates, stringent selection criteria, uneven distribution of seats across regions or inadequate information about available opportunities,” Bipin Singh, founder and managing director, GOAL Institute, told FE Education.
Flashback
In 2017, the NEET PG was replaced with other medical entrance tests. This is the first time that such a decision of making eligibility zero has been made.. It is believed that the motive behind the move is to fill the vacant seats, according to officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. According to experts a lot of seats belong to Pre and Para clinical subjects such as anatomy, physiology, FMT, PSM, among others. etc. These fields are considered non-clinical and students are not exposed to any clinical practice. Moreover, these doctors are confined to medical colleges as private hospitals do not have a requirement. As a result, due to limited growth opportunities, these seats remain vacant. “Unable to get admission to their choice field and course is one of the reasons. Furthermore, the college they got admission to wasn’t appropriate (distance, city, quality of education) or the quality of life after choosing those fields is not as per a student’s ambition and desire,” Dr. Adit Desai, co-founder, Doctutorials, said.
Reports further suggest that currently, more than 13,000 medical seats at the postgraduate level are vacant across the nation even after two rounds of counselling. With the abolition of the eligibility cut-off, any candidate who has participated in the NEET-PG exam, including those who received negative marks, are now eligible for postgraduate medical courses. However, experts suggest that candidates who score zero or negative marks are unlikely to secure a seat, as seat allocation will still depend on the ranking they attain.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are 45,337 medical seats available in India at the postgraduate level for the academic session 2023-24. Majorly, the NEET PG exam is administered for a total of 26,168 Doctor of Medicine (MD) seats, 13,649 Master of Surgery (MS) seats and 922 PG Diploma seats across 6,102 institutions including government, private and deemed/central universities. “The criteria for faculty appointments in medical colleges have also become more stringent, leading to vacancies. Students are hesitant to take up seats in subjects with less clinical orientation because they know the challenges they’ll face after graduation,” a doctor on the condition of anonymity said.
Typically, seats for specific categories such as scheduled caste (SC), scheduled tribes (ST), physically handicapped and in-service candidates, traditionally have lower qualifying percentiles. For instance, while the general and other backward classes (OBC) categories require 50%, each, as these categories have lower thresholds, the cut-off goes down to 40-45%. Experts believe that the issue arises when these category-specific seats go unfilled in the first, second or third rounds of counselling. “Instead of converting them into open category seats, the decision to lower the percentile requirement to zero is made too late in the process. As a result, high-ranking students from the open category miss out on the opportunity to secure these seats,” the doctor who did not want to be named, explained.
The answer
Experts believe that with proper evaluation of vacant seats in government and private colleges, this issue can be resolved. Seats often remain empty in government colleges due to issues like stipends or faculty shortages, among others. “The other potential solutions could include improved counselling process and awareness programmes about available seats, revising selection criteria to attract more candidates or incentivising rural or underserved area placements,” Singh suggested.
Experts fear that this kind of leniency may make the entrance process insignificant and its value may decline. Hence, a more grounded approach is required. “Admitting a student who scored only five marks out of 800 into a field like surgery is not acceptable. It raises concerns about the student’s commitment to their studies and questions their preparedness for the demanding three-year residency. NEET PG is designed to evaluate a student’s mental and intellectual capacity to excel in PG studies and this fundamental purpose seems to be overlooked this year,” Desai said.
Pros and cons:
The decision to remove the eligibility cutoff might be seen as a pragmatic approach to utilise all available seats and address the ongoing issue of vacant positions, ensuring aspiring medical professionals have more opportunities, Singh suggested.
“Eliminating the cutoff can promote diversity in medical education by admitting students from various backgrounds and regions. It can contribute to a more inclusive healthcare system, potentially addressing healthcare disparities in different parts of the country,” he added.
But conversely, one of the experts believed that the decision is problematic and implemented at an inopportune stage in the counselling process, which is a significant flaw. While many argue that reducing the percentile requirement will lead to a decrease in educational quality and potentially allow unqualified candidates to secure PG seats, the more critical concern is how seats are allocated.
“The decision may also lower academic standards, potentially compromising the quality of education and affecting patient care in the long run. Striking a balance between filling vacant seats and upholding educational standards is crucial,” Singh said.