Karnataka Government May Allot 5 Marks to PG NEET Aspirants Helping During COVID-19 Crisis

Karnataka Government is considering awarding five extra marks to postgraduate/postdoctoral NEET aspirants who are active in the COVID-19 relief work.

Doctors are the backbone of the COVID-19 response team. Since the upsurge in the number of reported COVID-19 cases in India, many final year MBBS students have also been roped in to help treat these patients. Many postgraduate students, preparing for the postdoctoral entrance examinations, have also been working full-time attending to the COVID-19 cases.

As a gesture of appreciation, the Karnataka government is likely to award five extra marks to the candidates who have been working actively towards COVID-19 relief. The candidates appearing for medical entrance examinations, such as NEET PG 2021 and NEET SS 2020, are likely to benefit from this. According to media reports, Dr Keshavareddy Sudhankar, Minister for Medical Education of Karnataka, informed that the government is considering awarding five marks to the NEET aspirants who have been involved in the COVID-19 response team.

He added that the state government is also considering an increase in the salary of Group-D workers and providing risk allowances to all front-line healthcare workers. He feels that this will help boost the morale of the healthcare workers who are working day and night to ensure the safety of those suffering from the disease.

While addressing a press conference, Dr Sudhankar informed the media that nearly 2,000 medical students, preparing for postgraduate entrance tests, will become a part of the COVID-19 response team. He added that final year nursing students will also be deployed at the COVID-19 centres.

However, these matters are still under discussion. The Minister assured that the decision will be taken shortly and shall be announced within the next few days.