Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K. Ponmudy has strongly opposed the announcement of University Grants Commission that a mandatory Common University Entrance Test (CUET) will be conducted for admissions to all courses, including undergraduate programmes, in the Central Universities from the coming academic year.
He said that CUET, like the National Eligibility-cum Entrance Test (NEET), will adversely affect the opportunities of students from Tamil Nadu and many other States. It will particularly affect those from underprivileged sections of the society, he said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
A ‘one country, one entrance examination’ approach will be detrimental to students studying in different syllabus in different States, he said. It was unreasonable to expect students to undergo another entrance examination despite studying hard and clearing the Class XII examinations. The introduction of CUET will only end up benefiting private coaching centres and the students who can afford them as being witnessed in the case of NEET now, Mr. Ponmudy said.
He said that Tamil Nadu students would find it difficult to get into Central Universities like the Jawaharlal Nehru University and the University of Delhi if CUET was introduced.
Recalling the measures being taken by the Tamil Nadu government to exempt the State from NEET, he said that the announcement on CUET has come as an insult to the injury. He urged the UGC to immediately repeal the announcement.
