Doctors approach Health Ministry, urge to lower NEET PG Cut-off

New Delhi: Referring to the need for a reduction in the cut-off marks for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) examination, the doctors under the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) on Friday met with the Union Health Ministry officials and submitted their request in this regard.

In the letter addressed to the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, which was submitted to the Ministry officials, FORDA pointed out how over the past few years, there has been a persistent challenge in the form of vacant seats in medical institutions across the nation, even after multiple rounds of counselling for NEET PG.

"This is a matter of great concern, not only for the healthcare system but also for aspiring medical professionals who are eager to contribute to our nation's healthcare infrastructure," mentioned the association.

Urging the Minister to consider the possibility to decrease the cut-off score for the NEET PG 2023 examination, the association also pointed out how reducing cut-off could prove helpful to prevent seat wastage, help fill up the pre and paraclinical seats.

"By lowering the cut-off, we can ensure that a larger number of eligible candidates are given the opportunity to fill these vacant seats, thereby preventing a wastage of valuable resources and infrastructure," mentioned the letter.

"In recent times, there have been protests regarding the recruitment of only doctors as faculty members in pre and paraclinical subjects in major government institutes. Lowering the cut-off would facilitate the filling of these seats and potentially alleviate this concern in the long run. Uncertainties Surrounding Future Exams: There is considerable uncertainty surrounding the future of NEET PG, with the possibility that this might be the last NEET PG examination ever conducted. Lowering the cut-off would provide a lifeline to numerous medical students who are in a state of flux due to these uncertainties," it further added.

Agreeing that this decision would require a careful balance between maintaining the educational standards and addressing the urgent need to fill vacant seats, the association also stated that "...it is our belief that with your visionary leadership, a solution can be found that benefits both the candidates and our healthcare system."

Also Read: Demand for NEET PG Cut-off Reduction Intensifies

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that referring to the large number of vacant postgraduate medical seats, earlier, the doctors under the United Doctors Front Association (UDFA) had urged the National Medical Commission (NMC) to reduce the cut-off percentile for NEET-PG counselling 2023.

In the letter directed to the NMC Secretary, the association had also referred to the fact that previously on similar grounds, the Union Health Ministry had taken the decision to reduce the qualifying cut-off percentile for NEET PG 2020, NEET PG 2021, and NEET PG 2022 counselling to fill the vacant seats. Last year alone, the Union Health Ministry approved lowering the cut-off marks for NEET PG 2022 by 25 percentile across all categories.

Recently, the issue was also raised by the Indian Medical Association (IMA), which recently wrote to the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and requested to reduce the NEET PG 2023 cut-off percentile up to 30% so that most of the seats are filled in both clinical and non-clinical branches.

Earlier this year, the Union Minister of State for Health, Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar informed the Lok Sabha that in the last three years, altogether 860 MBBS and 12758 PG Medical Seats remained vacant