New Board to hold Medical Entrance Tests (NeXT), Health Ministry
The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has announced plans to alter the National Medical Commission (NMC) Act of 2019, which will make it possible to establish a new board for medical entrance tests, among other things.
A public notice on the draft National Medical Commission (Amendment) Bill 2022 issued on December 29 reads, “It has been decided to make amendments in the NMC Act 2019 to incorporate provisions for setting up a fifth autonomous board, namely Board of Examinations in the Medical Sciences under the NMC which will also be in charge of conducting the NExT exam.”
The proposed NExT exam will serve as an entrance test for admission to postgraduate medical courses. NExT exam will be a replacement for NEET PG and FMGE. Currently, the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) is responsible for holding exams like NEET PG, FMGE, NEET SS.
In addition, the Ministry has also proposed amendments to the existing NMC Act. The new amendment makes it a mandate that all cases by medical colleges in matters related to the NMC should be under the jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court instead of the respective state high courts.
The ministry has put out the NMC (Amendment) Bill, 2022 in public domain to solicit comments/suggestions within 30 days from the date of issue of this notice.