Union Minister of State for Ayush (Independent Charge) Prataprao Jadhav announced that the National Exit Test (NExT) for Ayush will be effective from the 2021-2022 batch onwards.
In a press conference held at the Ministry of Ayush, Jadhav stated that the decision was taken on the recommendation of the committee set up to review the concerns of students on this matter. “The committee recommends that the NExT will be applied to students enrolled in the 2021-22 academic session under the NCISM and NCH Acts, 2020, removing any ambiguity in its implementation,” he said. The committee was presided over by Dr Sanjeev Sharma, responsible for reviewing the suggestions from students and submitting the recommendations to the Ministry.
NeXT is required to be conducted by the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) and the National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH) under the provisions of the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) Act 2020 and the National Commission for Homoeopathy (NCH) Act, 2020 within three years from their date of enforcement.
NExT is a key examination introduced by the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) under the NCISM Act, 2020. It is designed to assess clinical competency, medical ethics understanding, and ability to handle medico-legal cases for graduates in Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, and Sowa-Rigpa. This aims to ensure a fair and transparent process and to maintain the quality of Ayush education and healthcare standards.
The test is mandatory for licensing and enrollment in State or National Registers after completing a one-year internship, and the structure is a problem-based examination featuring clinical case scenarios, images, and videos to evaluate practical skills. The interns who have not completed their internship but qualified in the National Exit Test (Next) shall be eligible to register in the State or National registration board only after completion of a one-year internship.
The announcement was made after several recommendations from students of the Ayush stream to implement NeXT and a meeting with the Minister of State (IC) for Ayush was held with student representatives of BAMS/BHMS regarding the discussion on the issue of the NeXT exam of NCISM and NCH.
Jadhav also introduced a nationwide campaign called “Desh Ka Prakriti Parikshan Abhiyan” led by the Ministry of Ayush and the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM), to prioritise the health and well-being of citizens.
This campaign will engage over 4.5 lakh participants, including 1,35,000 students, 20,000 postgraduate students, 18,000 teachers, and 3 lakh practitioners. The campaign aims to enhance public interest in Ayurveda and boost economic growth.
Dr Jayant Deopujari, Chairman, NCISM (National Commission for Indian System of Medicine) and Dr Anil Khurana, Chairman, National Commission for Homoeopathy, were also present during the announcement.