90% of Indian students who study MBBS abroad fail in NEET: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi

Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi said on Monday that around 90% of Indian students who study medicine abroad fail to clear medical examinations in India. The Minister further said that 60% of Indian students who go abroad for medical studies land in China, Russia, and Ukraine, and a large number of Indian students end up in China alone. He further explained that the total fee for the MBBS course in these countries is somewhere around Rs 35 lakh, including the cost of six years of education, living expenses, coaching, and clearing the screening test on return to India. He said, in India, the fee for an entire MBBS course is around Rs 45 to 55 lakhs, or even more, which only includes the tuition fee for the MBBS course in private colleges, which is the major cause why Indian students go out to study.

Why do Indian students move to Ukraine for MBBS?

According to reports, around 20 to 25 thousand medical students go abroad every year. To pursue a career in medicine in India, one has to clear the NEET entrance examination. But every year, only seven to eight lakh students qualify for the NEET. However, there are around 90,000 medical seats in the country, and more than half of these seats come under government medical colleges, where education is comparatively cheaper. Students can get admission into these colleges only if they score good marks in NEET. While speaking to media persons, Joshi also spoke about Indian students who are currently in war-torn Ukraine. He said the Indian government is making efforts to bring back Indian nationals safely. He, however, revealed that along with other people, Indian nationals are also facing a problem, and those living in Kharkiv and Kyiv are particularly unable to get food and water.

Image: PTI/ ANI