Tamil Nadu government school leader Jeevith Kumar passed the NEET medical entrance exam with 664 points.
Chennai:
A student from Tamil Nadu, the son of a pastor father and a tailor mother, not only passed the entrance exam to the All India College of Medicine, NEET, but also beat the candidates from the state government schools. His family, however, has no means to pay for college tuition.
“My family can’t even afford the admission fee to a government medical school. I need help to continue my studies,” Jeevith Kumar, who cleared NEET on his second attempt, told NDTV.
Jeevith Kumar’s journey so far has not been without its difficulties.
Despite scoring 548 out of 600 in Class 12 last year, Jeevith was only able to score 193 points on the medical entrance exam without a private tuition. Seeing untapped potential in the teenager, teacher-turned-activist R Sabarimala posted a video asking for help on social media.
Things changed for him after help arrived from a person in the US who paid Rs 75,000 to enroll him in a private training center for a one-year residential program costing Rs 1.15 lakh. Her teachers also stepped in to help and this time she scored 664 on NEET.
“From his first day at school, he had always prayed to God to give him good teachers. They made all of this possible. He didn’t follow the English training before, but the teachers motivated him to study. I have another son and a daughter, “said Jeevith’s mother, who increases the family’s income by tailoring under the 100-day work schedule.
Jeevith, however, never aspired to be a doctor, but took it as a challenge when HE saw many aspirants die by suicide in recent years by failing the test.
When asked if he could have passed the medical entrance exam without private training, Jeevith said: “No way. It was the training that made it possible. I want to help many poor students like me to become doctors. After becoming a doctor, “I will reach out to poor patients.”
As Jeevith seeks help to secure his future, a key bill that could help many students like him awaits the governor’s approval.
In September, the Tamil Nadu assembly passed a bill to reserve 7.5 percent of places in medical schools for students in public schools. However, the BJP-appointed governor Banwarilal Purohit has yet to sign or reject it. Any further delay in passing the bill could deny the opportunity to about 300 students qualified as NEETs in government schools.
The Tamil Nadu assembly passed the bill after it failed to obtain an exemption for state students to appear on NEET. For nearly a decade, the state had abolished the medical entrance exam and admitted admission based on grades earned in class 12. Successive state governments have argued that NEETs favor the wealthy, who can afford training private, and deny opportunities to the poor and those of rural origin who score well in class 12 but cannot afford private training.
So far, at least 13 Tamil Nadu students have died by suicide after failing the NEET or fearing the exams.
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