A group of civil society representatives from Karnataka has urged the State government to move a resolution in the forthcoming legislature session calling upon the Union government to scrap the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) and the National Testing Agency (NTA), and restore the States’ authority over medical admissions.

In a letter to the Chief Minister, the signatories have said the mandatory nationwide NEET system had serious implications for federalism, educational autonomy, social justice and equal opportunity.

They pointed out that education is in the Concurrent List under Entry 25 of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. However, Section 14 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, which mandates a uniform NEET for medical admissions, had substantially curtailed the States’ role in selecting students for medical education, they said.

The representatives argued that a single examination could not ensure substantive equality in a country marked by differences in school curricula, languages, rural-urban disparities and socio-economic conditions. The system, they said, disproportionately benefited students from economically stronger and urban backgrounds who could afford expensive coaching.

The NEET had diminished the importance of school education by making two years of sustained academic effort subordinate to performance in a single examination, they said. Students from government schools, rural areas, Kannada-medium institutions and disadvantaged communities were placed at a structural disadvantage, they contended.

The letter also referred to controversies over alleged question paper leaks, examination irregularities and the reliability of scores, arguing that these had weakened public confidence in the centralised examination system.

The signatories proposed that admissions to medical colleges in Karnataka be based on physics, chemistry and biology marks in the II PU or class 12 examinations, along with constitutionally mandated reservation. Differences in evaluation standards among education boards could be addressed through a transparent and scientific normalisation process, they suggested.

Such a system, they said, would strengthen school education, reduce dependence on coaching centres, ease the financial burden on families and lessen students’ mental stress.

Referring to the Tamil Nadu Assembly’s passage of the Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill, 2021, the representatives said Karnataka could consider similar legislation and reserve it for the President’s consideration under Article 254(2) of the Constitution.

They urged the government to consult students, parents, teachers, educationists, medical experts, social justice organisations and political parties, and coordinate with other States opposed to the NEET.

“Admission to medical education should not depend on a family’s economic capacity, access to expensive coaching or performance in a single centralised examination, but should reflect students’ school performance, sustained effort and the principles of social justice,” they said.

The letter was signed by scores of civil society representatives, including retired Supreme Court judge Gopal Gowda, educationist V.P. Niranjanaradhya, writers Basavaraj Sulibhavi, Rajarama Tallur, Moodnakoodu Chinnaswamy, K. Neela, Rahmat Tarikere and Ashoka Shettar, journalist Indudhar Honnapura, doctors H.S. Anupama and Rudragowda C. Patil, theatre and film personality B. Suresh and former Vice-Chancellor Sabiha Bhoomigowda, among others.

Published - August 12, 2026 06:53 pm IST