For lakhs of Indian families, the dream of clearing NEET comes with a heavy price, one that coaching centres and the government profit from. (Representative image)
NEET dreams break families, while GST revenues shoot up
From bank loans to school tie-ups, the business of NEET coaching is booming, even as the guidelines meant to check it gather dust. Is anyone listening?
Three years ago, K Rani, a 38-year-old cook in Chennai, got a phone call that would upend her family's finances for years to come. A private coaching centre was on the line. The caller was persuasive: enrol her son Sanjay, then in Class 10, for NEET coaching after school hours, and he'd sail through both Class 12 boards and the medical entrance exam.
There was just one problem. "I couldn't afford to pay Rs 1,00,000 a year for coaching," Rani says. The centre had an answer for that too: they arranged a bank loan for her on the spot.
Sanjay attempted NEET twice and failed both times before dropping out of his preparation altogether. Rani is still repaying the loan. "His Class 12 scores were poor because he was too tired trying to focus on too many things," she says, her voice breaking. "He prepared for NEET but couldn't clear it."
You read about her plight? Then read this in black and white: The Centre's GST collection from coaching centres grew to Rs 5,517.45 crore in 2023-24 from Rs 2,240.73 crore in 2019-20, nearly 150 per cent growth over five years. The data (see graphic) is official: It is as per data presented by the Centre in the Rajya Sabha.
We are talking about a 16,000-crore-plus business, and does anyone care about the Ranis? The emotional toll is another story altogether.
Rigged system wipes out dreams
Similar stories are coming from every part of the country, with many saying the entire system is flawed and corrupt.
Several protesters at Jantar Mantar under the banner of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) poured out their pent-up anger against loopholes in NEET and other government examinations. The pain of students and parents who paid hefty fees to coaching centres, only to fail in the exams, was evident.
Also Read: NEET | CBSE-based exam pattern, steep coaching fees crush rural dreams
Videos of families narrating how they scraped together every rupee from the family kitty to pay for coaching, hoping their children would become doctors, engineers, or secure a sarkari job, have gone viral. They reveal how the rigged system has wiped out their dreams.
When Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said that 152 paper leak incidents have been recorded over the last ten years, the immediate question many asked was: How many people have been convicted? No answers.
Govt, coaching centres rake in the moolah
So far, the Union government has not released any data on convictions or action taken against the offenders. On the other hand, studies estimate that the coaching industry has grown into a Rs 60,000-crore profit-making business.
It is sadly ironic that while poor families are struggling to repay loans they have taken to pay for their children’s coaching, the union government is raking in the money at their expense. The Centre's GST collection from coaching centres grew to Rs 5,517.45 crore in 2023-24 from Rs 2,240.73 crore in 2019-20, nearly 150 per cent growth over five years, according to recent data presented in the Rajya Sabha.
Schools also part of collusion
There are instances of private coaching centres enrolling students for special classes on school campuses. H David (name changed) works for a popular coaching institute that has over 60 branches across India.
"We tie up with schools and offer a share of the fee to the school management. Since the course is taught on the school campus, many parents agree to enrol their children in the NEET programme," he said.
Also Read: DMK says NEET benefits coaching centres, India now waking up
Not just private players, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has floated a Rs 31.39 lakh tender to appoint a training service provider for JEE and NEET coaching for students studying in its schools. The tender has been invited from institutes that will offer a six-month programme for the 2025-26 and 2026-27 academic years, providing at least 12 hours of STEM coaching per week through classroom and blended learning.
‘Only 4 per cent of graduates got salaried jobs in 2025’
Speaking to The Federal, economist Prabhakar Krishnamurthy, who has worked on research projects on poverty alleviation and education, said that India's Periodic Labour Force Survey data showed that out of every 100 young Indian graduates in 2025, only four had managed to secure a salaried job with a contract, paid leave, and social security benefits.
Referring to the State of Working India 2026 report by Azim Premji University, he said the number of young graduates had increased 13-fold from 1983 to reach 63 million, while those unable to find work had grown 16-fold to 11 million by 2023.
"Many studies make it clear that thousands of middle-class families believe spending on private coaching is an investment in the future of their children. Parents are ready to exhaust their savings on coaching classes because it gives them the confidence that coaching will empower their children more than the school curriculum," Prabhakar Krishnamurthy explained.
Many educationists say the failure to regulate coaching centres has created a larger crisis. At the same time, the education system has failed to equip students with skills needed for employment in different sectors. As a result, lakhs of students are competing for fewer opportunities. Educationist Prince Gajendra Babu calls coaching centres "dummy schools" that undermine the importance of regular schooling.
Lack of regulation
The Union Ministry of Education issued the Guidelines for Regulation of Coaching Centres in January 2024 and circulated them to States and Union Territories as a model framework.
The guidelines prohibit coaching centres from admitting students below 16 years of age, ban misleading advertisements and rank guarantees, and recommend counselling support for students. They also recommend the registration of coaching institutes. However, there has been little follow-up on implementation over the past two years.
Also Read: No intake of students below 16 years, no misleading promises: Guidelines for coaching centres
"The guidelines themselves are leaky and leave major loopholes. That's why our youth are on the streets now," said Gajendra Babu.
