G. Viswanathan, founder-chancellor, Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), said on Monday that the controversy over the necessity of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) can be addressed only with a manifold increase in the number of medical seats in the country.
Delivering the presidential address at the convocation of VIT Chennai on Monday, he said NEET was controversial because over 20 lakh students were aspiring for one lakh seats available. With the Russia-Ukraine war showing that around 18,000 Indian students were in Ukraine, he asked what could be the justification for sending Indian students to countries like Ukraine instead of providing them with the opportunity to study medicine in India itself.
He said the National Medical Commission (NMC) allowed only up to 150 seats at a college a year with an exception of 250 at a few. In contrast, he said, the UK and China respectively admitted 400 and 600 students a year at colleges with similar infrastructure. He said India could also triple the number of seats with the existing infrastructure.
