Coming Clean: The NEET Business and a Look at the Ecosystem it Has Spawned

For Tathagat Awatar, the past year was a blur of long hours spent staring at his laptop screen. He would wake up at dawn, spend six hours studying, take a quick lunch, and then return to his screen for another six to seven hours. This grueling routine paid off, as he scored a perfect 720 out of 720 in the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, in 2024. Awatar credits his success to an edtech company that helped him prepare for the exam.

The NEET-UG test, conducted by the National Testing Agency, has been at the center of controversy lately, with the Supreme Court hearing petitions about alleged irregularities and paper leaks. The test is now the sole entrance exam for medical colleges in India, replacing a two-tier selection process. With 704 medical colleges offering a combined 109,170 seats, the stakes are high. An estimated 2.4 million aspirants took the test this year.

The NEET-UG test has given rise to a thriving industry of test-preparation institutes, with big names like Allen Career Institute, Resonance, Bansal, Aakash, Career Point, Physics Wallah, and Unacademy leading the pack. These institutes offer a range of services, from online courses to in-person coaching, and charge fees ranging from Rs 80,000 to Rs 1 lakh per year. However, there are also smaller, single-centre institutes that offer more affordable options, with fees starting from Rs 70,000.

The industry is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.07 per cent between 2023 and 2030, with the market valued at Rs 58,089 crore in 2021 and projected to reach Rs 1,79,527 crore by the end of the decade. But this growth comes at a cost, with many students and families struggling to afford the fees. The average preparation cost ranges from Rs 70,000 to Rs 2 lakh, making it prohibitive for those with low incomes.

The NEET-UG test has also raised concerns about affordability and meritocracy. A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree from a private college can cost up to Rs 75 lakh, while the same degree from a government college costs around Rs 6 lakh. This has led to a situation where students from affluent backgrounds have an advantage over those from lower-income families.

The cut-off for medical seats is around 20 per cent, which means that many students who score above 80 per cent in their class 12th exams may not secure a seat in a government college. This has led to a situation where students are forced to join private colleges or try again next year. The NEET-UG test has also been linked to several cases of student suicides, including that of S Anitha, who died in 2017 at the age of 17 after failing to secure an MBBS seat despite scoring 98 per cent in her class 12th exams.

The government has faced criticism for not doing enough to address the issues surrounding the NEET-UG test. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam party has been vocal in its opposition to the exam, citing allegations of anomalies and the high cost of preparation. The party’s Tamil publication, Murasoli, has reported that 26 aspirants have lost their lives due to NEET in Tamil Nadu alone.

The education ministry has defended the exam, saying that holding fresh exams would not be rational in the absence of proof of large-scale breaches of confidentiality. However, many aspirants are calling for a retest, citing concerns about the integrity of the exam. As the debate continues, it remains to be seen whether the NEET-UG test will be able to overcome its challenges and provide a level playing field for all students.