NEET-PG' zero eligibility: What does this mean for medical admissions?

The Medical Counseling Committee (MCC), on Wednesday announced that the eligibility for the vacant postgraduate seats in medical colleges of the country would be "zero percentile across all categories". This is the first time that the eligibility cut-off has been completely removed since the national eligibility cum entrance test postgraduate (NEET-PG) exam became the national entrance test for medical students in 2017.

 

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) made this decision to fill over 13,000 seats that remain vacant in medical institutes for PG students across the country, even after two rounds of counselling.

 

The notice by the MCC read, "NEET PG Counselling 2023 (qualifying percentile) has been reduced to 'ZERO' across all categories by (MoHFW). In this regard, it is mentioned that Fresh Registration & Choice Filling for Round-3 of PG Counselling will be opened again for candidates who have become eligible after reduction of percentile."

Also Read: NEET PG 2023 cut-off marks to be reduced soon by NMC, details inside

 

Previously, the NEET-PG cut-off percentage for general category applicants was set at 50 per cent. For PwD category, it was set at 45 per cent, and for reserved categories, it was set at 40 per cent.

 

Why was the eligibility reduced?

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had written to the health ministry, requesting a reduction in the cut-offs so that there would not be empty seats in medical colleges and aspiring doctors could enroll in PG programmes. This letter was shared on IMA's official X (formerly Twitter) page.

 

The letter to the ministry read, "We request you to reduce the NEET PG 2023 cut-off percentile up to 30 per cent so that most of the seats are filled in both clinical and non-clinical branches."

 

What does this mean?

 

With a "zero percentile" benchmark, anyone who has appeared for NEET-PG is now eligible to enrol in postgraduate courses. This includes those with negative marks.

 

There are around 225,000 candidates who appeared for 68,000 PG seats in the country, according to the Union Health Ministry. Therefore, it is unlikely that candidates with the lowest scores will be able to secure a seat.

 

Empty seats in medical institutes

 

Data from the health ministry shows that in 2021-22, around 3,744 PG seats remained vacant out of 60,202 after all rounds of counselling. The year before that, it was 1,425 out of 55,495, and in 2019-20, 4,614 out of 54,275 seats vacant. This year, at least 13,245 seats are vacant even after the first two rounds of counselling.

 

According to a list of vacant seats released by MCC for virtual counselling of Round 3, there are 1,743 general medicine seats, 723 general surgery seats, 1,459 obstetrics & gynaecology seats, and 1,604 anaesthesia seats that are currently vacant. Moreover, 181 microbiology seats, 144 pharmacology seats, 81 biochemistry seats, and 33 anatomy seats are also vacant.

 

The results for the third round were expected to be announced on September 16, however, they will now be released based on the new eligibility criteria by the end of the month.

 

Why are there so many empty seats?

 

One of the reasons for empty seats may be due to the increase in PG seats at medical colleges across the country. The government has set a target for 80,000 PG medical seats by 2024. At the end of 2022, the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya had stated that the number of seats at medical institutes had nearly doubled in 2014 and had reportedly grown by 105 per cent over the last eight years. He said that medical seats had grown from 53,000 to 96,000, while postgraduate seats more than doubled from 31,000 to 64,000.

 

In the same announcement, the health minister stated out of the total 96,077 MBBS seats, 51,712 seats were in government institutes.

 

Another reason for speciality specific vacancies may be the lack of interest from students. According to a report by the Indian Express (IE), many non-clinical specialities remain vacant as students do not opt for the courses. As these specialties involve treating patients directly, they are not "preferred" subjects. Subsequently, colleges cannot retain faculty for subjects with fewer students, making it difficult for those opting for these courses to begin their MBBS studies.

 

Criticism of the zero-eligibility criteria

 

The Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) expressed disapproval of the notice released by the Ministry of Health regarding the NEET PG cut-off criteria. It said zero percentile candidates being eligible for postgraduate seats is a mockery of the healthcare system.

 

Academics, on the other hand, added that this would increase the trading of seats in private medical institutes. The annual fees at government institutes can be as low as Rs 5,000, while private medical colleges can charge as much as one crore for the same course. The concern is that this may result in a situation where those with higher marks who cannot afford to pay exuberant fees will lose out on studying opportunities, while those with higher income backgrounds, but fewer marks may be able to pursue their PG degrees. A professor from a government medical college told IE that it would be like a "reverse economic quota".