Vellore’s Christian Medical College halts admission over NEET

The prestigious Christian Medical College in Tamil Nadu’s Vellore district has this year decided to leave 99 out of its 100 MBBS seats vacant this year in a bid to seek rights to select NEET-qualified students through its own counselling. Currently, the committees set up by the centre and the state governments through centralised counselling.

The one student who has been admitted is a soldier’s son, who was nominated by the centre for MBBS.

The students are selected from all over the country, especially those with ‘exceptional social concern’. Many students are from a poor background from remote pockets of India. After their course, they return to their villages to sever these areas. “We accept NEET. As a minority institution we believe we have the right to choose among qualified candidates fulfilling our vision,” said Dr Anna Pulimood, the Principal, while speaking to NDTV.

The college says it caters to 180 mission hospitals in rural and remote areas across the country where on completion of the course, doctors are required to serve for two years on low salary.

Last year, the Supreme Court exempted the college and it had admitted students through its own counselling. CMC authorities say the top court is …read more