NEET cancelled

Around 22.79 lakh students appeared for the “common and uniform National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG) for admission to undergraduate medical education in medical institutions across the country”. And now, without warning, it stands cancelled. This is not new. Every year, after one of India’s most prestigious and high-stakes examinations, the cycle repeats itself: a paper leak, an administrative lapse, or a “technical glitch,” and the future of lakhs of children is put on hold. The real question we must ask is this: Are we truly serious about our students’ futures?

These young students dedicate years, not weeks, to preparing for a single examination. They sacrifice their teenage years attending coaching classes. Their families invest savings, hope, and sacrifice. Then, overnight, a headline declares their effort void. Is our system so fragile?

A cancelled examination is not merely a bureaucratic error. It is a breach of trust. It tells every student that their time is disposable, their anxiety is irrelevant, and their future is negotiable.

Shikha Chauhan,

New Delhi

Austerity appeal

The Prime Minister’s call for austerity is a clear admission of failure, coming only after the strategic suppression of economic data during the election cycle. The ground reality is far removed from the government’s propaganda. However, we are now at a juncture where the national interest must supersede political accountability. While we must condemn the government’s lack of transparency, the duty to preserve resources for future generations now falls upon us. We should adopt carpooling and fuel conservation not because the “sermon” is flawless, but because the government’s failure has left the public as the final line of defence for India’s economic future.

Zaid Daraani,

Vitla, Mangaluru