The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) has again taken centre stage in Tamil Nadu’s political discourse. Governor R.N. Ravi’s remarks that he would never approve of banning the test in the State if it were up to him have triggered a row. This was followed by the unfortunate suicide of a student and his father after the former failed to secure a higher score in the test. The ruling DMK youth wing on Sunday last observed a day-long fast against NEET.
Against this backdrop, it would be interesting to look at Tamil Nadu’s chequered history with entrance examinations for professional courses. The AIADMK government of M.G. Ramachandran (MGR) had first introduced the Tamil Nadu Professional Courses Entrance Examination (TNPCEE) in 1984-85. Curiously, such a proposal was mooted even in 1977 when the State was under the President’s rule. A report in The Hindu on March 31, 1977, soon after the Emergency was lifted, said the State government was examining a proposal to conduct an entrance examination for professional colleges for the 1977-78 academic year. The idea, however, was given a swift burial.
