The cancellation of the AIPMT held in early May due to exam fraud should give room for deeper thinking into the entire selection process (“ >AIPMT cancelled, CBSE told to hold fresh exam ”, June 16). The test itself is one among unequals with a large number of eligible candidates kept out of it for some reason or other. The success rate is a mere 0.6 per cent. The only beneficiaries seem to be the coaching centres that charge hefty fees, and the publishers of guides. While it may be argued that the test is a ‘necessary evil’, it will be prudent to think of decentralising the entire selection process. As the number of institutions has increased manifold with every State having significant number of colleges, State-level selection may be thought of.
S.S. Rajagopalan,
Chennai
The prevailing eligibility to get a seat in a medical college seems to be ‘money, power (political/bureaucratic), caste and merit’. Though the Supreme Court has said that “merit cannot be a casualty”, the fact is that the quality of doctors in our country is grim not to mention the plight of the people being treated by such doctors. It is the right of the people of India to know what the Medical Council of India is doing to address this form of malignancy spreading in the medical education system.
Ramakrishnan C.G.,
Kozhikode
What is distressing is the casual attitude of the CBSE which has even thought of segregating the results of the 44 ‘beneficiaries’. Such an attitude has not only affected its reputation but has also impacted the trust factor of students and parents. In such a situation, the Supreme Court’s decision comes as immense relief to candidates like me who appeared for the entrance test. The hard work of many was at stake after the reports of mass leaks and malpractices.
Varshdeep Singh Chahal,
Patiala, Punjab
