Hon’ble Sir

We wish to bring to seek your kind intervention for inclusion of Urdu as a medium of examination for the forthcoming National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for the Academic Year 2017-18.

We are pained to know that the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has decided to conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for the Academic Year 2017-18 in 8 languages but has kept the Urdu out of this important test.
Till the academic year 2011-12, entrance tests for medical and dental courses were conducted through State Common Entrance Tests which were conducted by the state governments through bodies authorised for the same. These tests were conducted in the primary languages in which higher and higher secondary education in the states were conducted. In Maharashtra for instance, the Common Entrance Test was conducted in English, Marathi and Urdu. While it is not an official language of the State of Maharashtra, the fact that Urdu was one of the languages in which the test was conducted is indicative of its importance as a medium of higher and higher secondary instruction.

Urdu is one the languages listed in Schedule VIII of the Indian Constitution. Further, Urdu has also been accorded official language status in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir and the national capital, New Delhi. There are a large number of students in each of these states who undertake secondary and higher secondary education, including in the science stream, in Urdu. In Maharashtra alone, in just 4 out of the 8 divisional Boards of the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education, the number of junior colleges in which the medium of instruction is Urdu is as high as 156. It is further submitted that the around 11000 students in Maharashtra alone study science in Urdu medium. Therefore, absence of Urdu, as a medium of examination in NEET-UG effectively exclude from one of the most important professional entrance examination of the country.

In this regard, we also wish to bring to your kind attention the decision of Hon’ble Supreme Court, in the Writ Petition (Civil) No. 168 of 2013, entitled Ansari Mahin Fatema& Ors Versus Union of India and Ors, has recognized that a large number of students, who have pursued the discipline consisting of Physics, chemistry, and Biology in the Urdu medium and such students stand to lose the opportunity to compete in this examination. Hon’ble Supreme Court further observed that there are a large number of students, who have studied in schools in Urdu medium.

Considering the aforementioned facts, Hon’ble Supreme Court, directed the Central Board of Secondary Education to conduct, albeit as one time measure, separate test for such Urdu medium students.

The selection of only these 6 regional languages, in addition to English and Hindi, by the Ministry has no reasonable basis especially for students who have had the option of appearing in their medium of instruction in their state CETs for medical and dental examination.

Please consider that exclusion of Urdu as medium is highly detrimental to students across the country who received their secondary and higher secondary education in Urdu language.They are suddenly confronted with having to either appear in language which they did not undertake their secondary education in or not appear at all.
In the circumstances, we respectfully urge you to kindly consider and direct inclusion of Urdu as one of the medium of examination for National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for the Academic Year 2017-18
We shall remain highly grateful for your kind gesture.