In the manifesto released by the Congress today, it has been stated that the party would scrap the NEET examination in several states, including Tamil Nadu, and replace it with a state level examination conducted by the state if elected to power.

“The NEET examination is discriminatory against students from certain States. In addition, it interferes with the State Government’s right to admit students domiciled in the State to medical colleges in that State. Hence, we will take measures to dispense with the NEET examination and substitute it with a State-level examination of equivalent standard, approved by the competent authority for admission to medical colleges in that State,” the statement on the party’s manifesto read.

In the manifestos they released last week, both DMK and AIADMK had promised to scrap the National Eligibility cum Entrance test. The medical entrance, which follows the CBSE syllabus, puts the students of TN who follow the state board syllabus at a major disadvantage. Two medical aspirants, Anitha and Pradeepa, took their lives after they failed to clear the entrance exam in 2017 and 2018 respectively.