Deemed institutions cry foul over state interference

Deemed institutions in the state have rubbished allegations that they are not conducting admissions as per the NEET UG (undergraduate) scores. The authorities have said that they have never refused NEET scores but have a problem with the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) forcing them to admit students as per their merit list. Deemed universities have claimed that they have already started the admission process, and if they go by the DMER merit list, they would not have any autonomy to admit students.

An official from one of the eight deemed institutions said they would not conduct admissions through any other means except the NEET scores. “If one observes the information posted on the website of each of the institutions, it is clear that admissions to the medical or dental courses ought to be done through NEET scores only. It is as per the Supreme Court order and there is no question of conducting admissions through any other means,” said the official, who did not wish to be named.

He added that they had also specified that admissions would be offered only to those students who listed their NEET scores. Hence, there was no reason to have doubts regarding the admission process at all.

An official from another deemed university added that the problem was because the state government wants to control the intake too. “All the universities have made it clear that they will only use NEET scores, but the insistence that deemed universities follow the all-India merit list infringes on the very rights granted to them,” said the official who also requested anonymity.

Dr P. Shingare, director, DMER, the regulating authority for medical and dental colleges in the state, said, “The decision to include deemed universities in the centralised admission process through NEET scores is only taken to ensure that students do not have to run from one college to another for admission.”