Two student bodies from Jaintia Hills have urged Education Minister Rakkam A. Sangma to re-conduct the NEET Under-Graduate examination in Jowai centre due to the alleged discrepancies that occurred at the test centre at St. Mary Mazzarello Girls Higher Secondary School, Jowai on May 5.
In a joint petition, the Jaintia Students’ Union (JSU) and the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) Jaintia Hills District appreciated the State government’s initiative to hold the NEET examination in Jaintia Hills for the first time.
“But, we are deeply troubled by the mismanagement and distress caused to the nearly 400 students who appeared for the examination,” the two students’ unions said.
According to the petition, during the examination, students were provided with two sets of question papers labeled MNOP and QRST respectively and this led to confusion among candidates and even the examination management was initially clueless about which set to attempt.
“Subsequently, it was clarified that questions from QRST were the genuine ones, causing significant mental distress to students who had already wasted precious time attempting the MNOP set,” they added.
The petition also said that additionally, students were not allowed to submit their admit cards until late in the evening, resulting in a rush and inconvenience. Moreover, students from far-flung villages were unable to submit their admit cards to date.
“This situation is deeply concerning as students, through no fault of their own, have been subjected to the consequences of mismanagement by untrained invigilators. The provision of multiple sets of question papers without adequate guidance and the failure to allocate extra time to compensate for the time lost after the clarification of the correct set exacerbates the issue,” both JSU and KSU said.
“Without prejudice to the rights and interests of our student candidates, it is hereby requested that a re-examination of the NEET examination be conducted. Many students who appeared for the aforementioned examination invested significant time, effort, and financial resources in preparation, with the ultimate goal of securing admission to medical institutions for pursuing MBBS studies. Therefore, in the interest of upholding fairness and ensuring equal opportunities for all candidates, a re-examination is deemed necessary to rectify the discrepancies and provide a level playing field,” they demanded.
Further, the two students’ bodies said that it is imperative that steps are taken to prevent such incidents from occurring again, and that the well-being and interests of students are prioritised in all examination processes.
Similarly, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), Meghalaya today urged the National Testing Agency (NTA) to re-conduct the NEET-UG 2024 examination for Jowai centre in view of the discrepancies related to distribution of two sets of question papers, denoted as QRST and MNOP, each featuring entirely different sets of questions and the confusion caused in the collection of admit cards from candidates.
ABVP also called upon the NTA to provide immediate clarification regarding the rationale behind the distribution of two distinct sets of question papers for the same examination.
Further, the ABVP sought clarification on the authenticity of each set of questions, and implored NTA to elucidate which set is deemed correct and which is incorrect.
“Should it transpire that the two sets of question papers distributed at the Jowai centre indeed differ, we advocate for the affected candidates to be afforded the opportunity for a re-examination,” it said.
According to the ABVP, such a course of action is imperative to uphold the integrity and fairness of the NEET-UG 2024 examination process.
Urging the NTA to expedite its response and take decisive action to address this matter with the utmost urgency, the ABVP said, “The affected candidates eagerly await resolution and assurance of equitable treatment in this regard.”
