Top court refuses to defer NEET-PG exam
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a plea to postpone National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET-PG 2022) examination, saying the delay would lead to deficiency of doctors in hospitals and have serious repercussions on patient care.
The exam, which was earlier notified to be held on March 12, is now slated to be held on May 21.
Hearing a petition filed by a group of doctors seeking postponement of the exam by two months as they had failed to register themselves on time, a bench of justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and Surya Kant said any form of deferment would also result in “chaos and uncertainty” among lakhs of doctors who have registered for the test.
The petitioner doctors said they had missed the March 25 deadline for registration amid the delayed counselling process for the previous batch. A representation filed by the doctors on the issue was shot down by the ministry of health and family welfare on May 10. “How can we do this,” the bench said after it was informed by the Centre that 206,571 doctors registered for the examination and preparations for holding Neet-pg 2023 in January already begun.
“While the prayer of petitioners seeking postponement (of the exam) may seem innocuous, this will seriously impact patient care and availability of doctors and have a cascading effect on patient care as well as career of doctors… Over two lakh doctors have registered. Their schedule will be seriously affected and any postponement will create chaos and uncertainty,” it added.
Appearing for the Centre, additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati said that a delay in conducting NEET-PG 2022 would result in fewer number of resident doctors across hospitals, as instead of three batches, only two batches of doctors were available for patient care and treatment due to the delay in holding the exam.
“Delaying this exam is bound to have serious adverse impact on patient care and treatment and will also (have a) cascading effect on other ancillary issues, including the course of super-specialty,” Bhati said. “Consider who is not before the court. There are a large number of students on the other side. It has a cascading effect on patients who also cannot approach this court.”
Accepting the ASG’S submission, the bench said: “What must be borne in mind is that on the other side are a large body of students and needs of patient care which cannot be ignored. Postponement of any examination is replete with serious consequences. Patient care needs to be paramount.”