No plans to merge NEET, JEE with CUET for next 2 years: Dharmendra Pradhan

There are no plans to merge engineering entrance exam JEE and medical entrance exam NEET with the Common University Entrance Test (CUET), Union Minister of Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Dharmendra Pradhan said.

University Grants Commission Chairman Jagadesh Kumar had last month said in future JEE and NEET will be merged with the CUET.

"Merger of NEET, JEE and CUET is currently a concept, a thought and the government has not yet decided upon it in principle," Pradhan said while interacting with students, mostly hailing from his home state Odisha, of Allen Career Institute in here during his one day visit to the city on Tuesday.

There is no proposal of merging NEET, JEE with CUET and it will take at least two years to decide upon the concept of a merger of the three exams and to conduct a combined test, Pradhan said while asking the students not to be afraid.

On the increasing content in books from class 9 onwards so that students do not have to consult other books for competitive exams preparation, Pradhan said the new books under the New Education Policy-2020, would come out in the next two years.

Implementation of NEP-2020 has started and books for the five-year foundation course called Bal Vatika (kindergarten) will be in schools by February 2023.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union government has envisioned to set up a digital university in the country wherein students can pursue multi-disciplinary courses for dual degrees, the minister said.

Meanwhile, the minister asked the students to give their suggestions on the content of the books and study material for the National Curriculum Framework Citizen Survey and assured them that their ideas would be considered.

Tens of thousands of students from across the country get enrolled in several coaching institutes of Kota for preparation of various exams every year.