The Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, on July 6, said that the 2019 MBBS batch will not be covered under the National Exit Test (NExT). While laying the foundation stone of the Critical Care Unit at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Raipur, the Health Minister clarifies that NExT will be applicable on MBBS batches from 2020 onwards. The Union Minister further said that the Central Government and the National Medical Commission (NMC) will not take any such decision, which may lead to confusion.
What is NExT
As per the NMC Act, the National Exit Test is a common qualifying final year MBBS examination, which is a licentiate examination for modern medicine practice. It will also serve as a screening test for merit-based admission to postgraduate courses and for foreign medical graduates who wish to practice in India.
MBBS 2019 Batch will not be covered under NExT
In response to a question on whether NExT will create additional stress for medical students, Mandaviya said that students are not required to undergo any stress. The 2019 MBBS batch will not be covered under the NExT examination. However, it will be applicable to the 2020 batch onwards. Also, the NExT exam will not be held this year.
“The other thing is that I will not consider the final exam as NExT. Give the degree, but after giving the degree, registration will only be done when you pass NExT. This means NExT equals NEET," he added.
IMA Urged Govt to Reconsider NExT Proposal
Earlier, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) opposed the National Exit Test (NExT), stating that it is not possible to implement the NExT exam in the current situation until the NMC sets uniform standards of education in medical colleges in India. In its statement, IMA has appealed to the central government to intervene and instruct the NMC to reconsider the proposal for NExT, hold detailed discussions with stakeholders and address all concerns before attempting the implementation of NExT for Indian medical college students.
The NMC issued the NExT (National Exit Test) Regulation 2023 last week, stating that the exam would be conducted in two phases, in which NExT Phase 1 and NExT Phase 2 exams would be conducted twice a year.
(With PTI Inputs)
