Chandigarh: PGI set to restart practical exams for DM\M.CH entrance

The agenda was put forth in a meeting held last week and was approved during a Standing Academic Committee meeting on Thursday.

On December 27, 2018, PGI had requested the President of the Institute and Union Health Minister to abolish the practical examination based on various grounds, including the reports of the vigilance branch of PGI, which had presented several investigations showing that marks being awarded in the practical components of these entrance examinations were often arbitrary and not reflective of the merit and academic potential of the candidate concerned. Many candidates had made complaints that while some candidates got low marks in theory received high marks in the practical, calling it a case of favouritism.

The President of the Institute, in an order, dated December 29, 2018, stopped the practical examination and instructed that an inquiry be conducted to understand if any unethical situation exists in any other examination.

According to a senior professor of the Institute, the decision to restart the practical evaluation component for DM\MCH entrance exams conducted by PGI is “unfortunate.” Among the most coveted in the country, admission to academic courses in PGI is highly competitive, attracting the best from across the country.

“This is a retrograde step and will breed corruption, nepotism, and favoritism. The entrance examinations are based on a theory paper for 80 marks and the practical component was for 20 marks. Many examinees had raised concerns about the necessity to conduct practical examinations of candidates who had qualified for the theory exams and also expressed their anguish and concerns about the gap between the marks obtained in the theory and practical exams. In many cases, the examinees had secured low marks, though they had topped their theory examinations. These complaints indicated bias and favoritism and in my opinion, put merit on the backfoot. How can a student who has secured top marks in theory, be given 4 out of 20 in the practical exam. There have also been complaints about the lack of uniformity in how the candidates were marked in the practical examinations conducted by the various departments of the Institute. The Institute has a world-class reputation, and only merit must be considered.”