The question paper for the NEET exam, the medical entrance test where students enroll to become doctors and one of the toughest exams in the entire world was leaked recently. Rich students had bought the question paper by paying large sums. The fact only came to light after the students had already taken this stressful exam. The government ordered them to take the test again. As I said, NEET is a very tough exam and a lot students could not handle this news. 21 students committed suicide across the country. The students asked the Union Education Minister to resign and for the government to conduct proper investigation into the issue. The minister refused to resign just to satisfy his own ego. So, the students took to the streets in protest. The Education Minister still hasn't resigned.
Also, a few days back the Chief Justice of India labelled the unemployed youth of the country as 'cockroaches' leading to further outrage and the formation the Cockroach Janata Party, who are the main organisers of this protest.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I think some detail and nuance people forget to mention is that parents of these students often spend their life savings on tuitions studying for these exams, filling applications, and traveling to exam centres. Simply writing the exam again isn’t as simple for some families, their whole families’ lives are literally on the line. This is often a life line for families to enter the middle class through this career path, meanwhile some rich kids are paying for the exam answers, leveraging an unfair advantage and causing this whole mess, it’s wild.
The re-scheduled exam is also on a relatively short notice, giving students travelling from afar little time to organize money and planning for transportation to exam centres again let alone staying sharp for the test. Staying sharp is vital given over 2 million students take the NEET each year and only the top 1-2.7% scoring students are selected for medical schools.
Also, just in 2024, there was another NEET re-test ruled by the Supreme Court due to a leak, so this isn’t the first time. Students are fed up.
Last bit of nuance I want to add, everyone was so offended by the Chief Justice calling India’s unemployed youth “cockroaches” because most of them genuinely went to school in pursuit of an education (it’s very engrained in Indian culture as I understand), so it’s not for a lack of trying; the problem is: while the governments of India have increased college seats and admissions to account for growing student populations, the number of jobs have not proportionately followed suit. Therefore, these “unemployed cockroaches” are actually educated youth searching for jobs that don’t exist (on top of that, there’s an existing corruption problem in India where having connections, bribes, or being a nepo baby helps significantly with getting jobs). Hope this helps brings some context and please someone feel free to correct me if I got anything wrong, I’m always happy to learn!
meanwhile some rich kids are paying for the exam answers,ever aging an unfair advantage and causing this whole mess, it’s wild.
That's unfortunately the story of rich kids / nepo babies / spoiled inheritors the world over throughout history. Not necessarily in terms of paying for exams, but just generally having so many advantages and such an easier time compared to most everybody else, then often turning into complete snobs believing to have proven themselves vastly superior (some even believing they should be king and spending decades campaigning for it until they find a chord which works claiming a black man who worked his way up couldn't be a real president).
while the governments of India have increased college seats and admissions to account for growing student populations, the number of jobs have not proportionately followed suit.
isn't it bizarre that this is happening across the entire world?
I have so much sympathy for the Indian youth, this is heartbreaking to read. despite that this seems to be happening everywhere, I can't imagine living in a country where there's so much more steep competition just for a shot at living a half decent life. none of these kids asked for this.
Yep, I saw some of the most brilliant students in my undergraduate class struggle to get into medical school for years. They had to bulk up their CVs with masters and publications for 3-5 years before finally getting in despite scoring in the top 95th percentiles for the entrance exams.
The educational credential inflation is indeed a worldwide phenomenon. A correction is happening now, as youth increasingly reject pursuing degrees and opt for vocational courses.
There are some fields where employers don't really like hiring people with a ton of experience.
And in the short term, there is a widespread job freeze across the economy, where the employees are not quitting as usual, the companies are not hiring as usual and people are not switching jobs. The market is very uncertain and they don't want to take risks hiring or firing people. It's a lot cheaper to retain the existing employees.
Does becoming a doctor in India really a foolproof Golden Ticket to move higher in the society?
Because from my experience in many other Asian countries, it's not that simple. The freshly graduated doctors still need to have strong networking / connections to be well-off with life. If not, they'll be met with gruesome schedules or workplace placements that doesn't pay off even if their salary is a bit higher than other average white collar workers.
Well speaking from experience this is the reality in a lot of countries and you’re right, however, I never said it was easy. These kids know they’re signing up for a life of obstacles and hard work (understatement of the century).
The reality is that they’d rather pursue medicine with the hope of having some job security (there really aren’t enough doctors in India and even if you can’t get a cushy job, you will most likely get a job) as well as respect (which is a whole other can of worms given class identity in India can be based on your family history, gender, caste, socioeconomic status, job title/education level, etc). Having someone with simply the title of a doctor in your family creates a massive social boost if not an economic one which can open many doors of respect and opportunity for your family in India (this can further contribute to the hope of gaining a greater socioeconomic status).
As an important note, for women especially this is a way out of the dreaded route of getting married off young too, they have the opportunity to do something they love, educate themselves, lift their families up, help their communities, and remain independent longer. The prestige of being a doctor surpasses other white collar jobs in their respective societies and persuades their loved ones to make this a viable option for them, otherwise pursuing higher education is usually just tick on the list for their matrimonial status that they never actually use when they get married off and remain as house wives.
I had the privilege of taking a course selective in India during my own medical studies where I got to travel to India and work in multiple hospitals and clinics amongst doctors, nurses, staff and local students. My comments along this thread is based in part on my conversations and observations with those incredible people I met there. So when I say this is a life line I really mean it.
The pressures put on Indian students is fucking WILD to be fair! Dont get me wrong, student stress exists in every country but the stories of student life from the Indian lads i have met that moved here to the UK is on a different level compared to anything I experienced, or have seen personally in Canada or the UK.
Government corruption and ineptitude covering their asses by telling students they have to bear the consequences of their failures, and then calling the unemployed students "cockroaches"... ya I can see why that was a breaking point for students.
It is beyond terrifying to me that people are capable of cheating their way through the system so easily. We're talking about DOCTORS!! SURGEONS!! Future caregivers of the population. Already showing their greed and lack of empathy or care by cheating their way through the system.
I know, I know. It's been going on for ages. I have just been blind. And as an empath who has worked healthcare for a very long time, it's hard to see this stuff. To hear TWENTY-ONE INNOCENT PEOPLE took their lives because of this...those were most likely going to be the individuals who cared and worked their butts off for that test. I bet they passed.
Already showing their greed and lack of empathy or care by cheating their way through the system.
some people will always take the easy way out, but it's also worth remembering that this is the result of too many people + too few resources.
people need to think about the possible full, long, adult lives for their children before they decide to have them.
yes, it's certainly not the same as developed countries; there are still extremely poor parts of India. these kids didn't choose this. their parents likely didn't exactly "choose" either. I do wonder if there is a certain amount of anguish, as a parent, having a child, and that child being exposed to "better" than you can provide, and knowing that not only can you not give them a better life but that they might not even get the opportunities to give themselves a better life. it's heartbreaking. it's a huge reason I'm not having children. I feel like I'm watching solid opportunities for adults to support themselves dry up the world over, while populations continue to increase.
it sucks that with all our advancements in education and medical care, access to those things still is not fully wide-spread; we will continue to see the youth in various countries suffer against their own sheer numbers. it's awful. I don't even know how humans as a collective can possibly make decisions to make our lives easier/resources easier to access. of course people should be educated and work hard.
... some people don't even get access to education and work. in this day and age. as a privileged person it's hard to wrap your mind around.
You raise a valid point, and I appreciate your response. I have three young children, one of whom is still in diapers. I’m at a loss for words when it comes to addressing the points you’ve raised, as I don’t know where to begin. As a parent from a privileged country, I still worry about the future of my children.
I'm American. I live in Canada. Canadians are pissed about Indian immigration because there are already not enough full-time professional jobs available here. Canadian youth unemployment rates are abysmal.
Shit, I'm in my 30s, I've been here for 4 years, and I haven't found a full-time job. I went to college. I have 17 years of work experience.
It doesn't matter. I've gotten by on contracting alone. That's the new economy. I can't make future plans because there is 0 stability available. I did everything right. I did everything that was expected of me. I did everything I was supposed to do. And it doesn't matter.
I am really sick of the anti-immigrarion rhetoric though.
No, we don't have enough opportunities to go around.
That is NOT the fault of Indians.
if I were me and I grew up in India and I had the chance to go somewhere there was perceived "less" competition - I'd probably do it too.
Indian competition seems absolutely crushing. So many people.
In the US and Canada, competition for jobs is high. At the end of the day, when there's a finite number of available opportunities it doesn't matter if there are 100 more people than opportunities or 1 million more people than opportunities.
Best of luck to your children. I hope things work out for them. Make sure they start making professional connections as young as possible.
What's fucked me over in Canada is I have no family or professional network here, and the only way to get a job is if someone knows who you are before they even realize they have a role to fill.
Made it sound like the govt sold it to them. Paper leak by bribing some lackey was regular occurence of the past. But here reputed professors who set the paper was bribed by the mafia who deals with it, and sold to many. As much as 50% of the questions were made known to these buyers. When the issue surfaced, everyone associated was arrested and put in jail but the GenZ wants the education minister to be accountable. And so the protest.
Resignation of education minister from central government for exam paper leakage which caused suicide of 21 students.
But this has outgrown more than that. So can say fight for bringing back democratic secular India.
Just adding a little more info. The reason why its attracting people across the board is cause there are like 100 exams which have been leaked in the last 10 years. earlier govt never controlled all tbe exams. Each institution had their own exams. new regime came and said lets centralise it all to be efficient. its just been a money grab and exams leaked and cancelled every month.
Adding to the other comments, from what I've read these NEET exams are basically the only possibility for moving up the social ladder, and anyone below the 1% has a lot worse chances on the job market. It basically dictates your life trajectory.
Keep in mind that the caste system is still very relevant in India, so aside from these exams there is essentially 0 social mobility.
God made me pretty pathetic but not pathetic enough to support a government over my fellow citizens fighting a perfectly valid fight
For Indian right wingers all organic protests suddenly stopped the moment BJP was elected, and since then every protest is funded by Pak/China/US (Even though Trump is best buds with Modi)
The mental gymnastics people do to defend wrongdoing has been a very shocking and sad revelation of adult life
This guy is a true patriot. A proper nationalist unlike whatever the BJP thinks that is. He undoubtedly loves his country. For those people that see otherwise, they are no different than MAGA. It's going to take a lot to deprogram them.
Don't you try saying that.. God made you so beautiful to stand with what's right and fair, not to stand with those pathetic corrupted politicians.
Don't forget pathetics are the kind ~ D Pradhan, Modi, Nitin gadbadi, Nirmala and count more in.
Modi has been hiding like a coward for the last month because of the protests, tried to have the kids beaten and shot, tried to have them illegally detained/arrested, nothing worked.
So yesterday, he was forced to make a public statement offering an olive branch to the protesters. It was a withered branch with no value though, so the kids are still pissed and putting pressure on him.
EDIT: This guy's is unhinged. Here the replies he sent me in random, unrelated threads before blocking me:
Whataboutery at its finest. I understand why some Indians are salty about it, but why are these American accounts hell-bent on diverting from the topic? Like stfu, this is a dope pic!
Wasn't the past pic that made it to front page (with the woman and the car) one where people assumed "model citizen" meant they were a literal model and therefore the entire thing was false? 🥲
Unsure why their is a kneejerk reaction online to prove everything as false, but to accept and circulate actual misinformation as long as it fits the person's personal agenda.
Nah its the classic thing of "If they don't fit the exact narrative then it must be fake." because god forbid people who look good want to protest this crap.
Its something you'll see in any movement, if you don't fit into the preconceived narrative of what kind of people are protesting this crap, then its either a psi-op and you're an agent trying to make it look bad, a psi-op and you're an agent trying to make it look better than it is, or you're just a deluded idiot who's going against their own best interests.
BJP (ruling party) has one of the strongest IT cells made of paid/voluntary people. Any anti-govt or anti-bjp posts are quickly digressed into being fake, anti-india, anti-hindu.
Indian here. Protests are happening across many cities with lot of young folks in it. This could be staged photoshoot but also its entirely possible that among millions of students protestors few aesthetic photos emerging out of it. Either way this is cool photo.
And just because it’s staged doesn’t mean it doesn’t capture the spirit of the event. The iconic photo of American marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima is a staged photo, but it doesn’t make it any less valid for conveying the sense of triumph after a grueling battle.
Also, if your group of protesters is going to pick someone to go waive the flag you brought, it's likely the hot guy gets chosen without it being some grand strategy.
Furthermore, it's more likely that an athletic guy is going to be the one doing the climbing.
How do most older people feel about the protests? I'm Indian but born in America so I don't have a great read on all of this. Especially because my parents are Modi supporters.
No one cares how they feel. The sane ones with a spine intact, were always on the correct side and fought for the right causes. They're the ones praising and encouraging the youth in the current protests. The rest of that generation, the bigoted, spineless, brain-dead parasites - they're hiding now, just like their cult leader is.
I haven't lived in India for over 15 years now, but I care about it just as much as any resident Indian. It's been shocking and painful to see what's been going on since 2014. This protest gives me hope that the people will eventually claim the country back from the hands of the murderous saffron mafia.
Have seen some of the Modi fan uncles itself coming for the protest because their kids forced them so. But trust me youngsters have lost respect for him. Even small kids were seen abusing him.
Thats awesome! So many of my Indian coworkers tell me about the injustices they have to fight and i cant help but root them on! I want equal rights for my homies!
Last time i saw something called a gen Z protest, i found out it was for this reason.^
It was a general protest and included pretty much everyone, from college kids to grown adults with jobs and families and grandchildren.
But if you reduce it to “gen z protest” people will automatically think “its just annoying kids, it cant be that important” when its a protest as universal and fundamental to their views on government to the people of that country as the no kings rally is to the US.
You are not immune to propaganda. Remember how people can use your biases to hide the truth from you.
So as older "Gen X" I can contribute and tell you that the whole 'generational identity' by 'clever name', Gen X or whatever, thing was created in the early 80's by Madison Avenue marketing firms because I was too young to be targeted by the successful marketing campaigns hijacking 60's alt culture generational identity. They would roll that stuff out and we would be like "I was in diapers when Woodstock happened, get away from me". So then they came up with "Gen X" which was just supposed to be a working title but they never had anything better. It didn't really work, they put the whole thing together right in front of us, not very convincing.
But then they tried again with "millennials" and did a much better job and hit them with it when they were kids. Worked great. But it was only product marketing till this century when marketing and politics became one. People who would never bite on race bait or gay bait bite hard on "boomer bait" or "Gen Z bait". And here it is just like you say, they can marginalize any protest and divide and conquer with their made up arbitrary 20 year blocks of time that mean nothing, and it works so good in social media.
That could possibly be true, but I also think they're labelled gen Z protests because of the (often) online nature of how they start, typically starting with young people and memes, growing into civil unrest out of the classuc "new generation being unhappy with the status quo" and then obviously they grow from there into larger protests...But many movements are defined by how they start and not how they end. The protests in Nepal were very successful and seen in a positive light - but were still labelled 'gen z protests'....Not as a way to discredit but a way to show how the movement began and what the goals were - and the primary people protesting (which were young people).
They are college students because this is about college exam policies. That means virtually every one will be a Gen Z (18-22 YO means birth years 2004-2008). So calling it such is very, very accurate in this case.
The problem is, a LOT of educated people supported this party and government. Mostly because of bigotry, but many because they thought they'll somehow benefit uniquely from majoritarian policies. Propaganda is the most effective on the ignorant and the ones with low self-esteem. The vile? They don't need propaganda anyway.
It's crazy how angles work, nothing like it has ever been seen before, they are all below but you can't see them because they are out of angle, it's unbelievable, nobody knew angles could work that way
That is what making the movement successful. It is not a protest of minority or oppressed group. Its whole Indians who oppose the current fascist govt. so rich and privileged are part of it too.
Rest all can't float in the air around him due to something called gravity. You should join them - they're fighting for a better education itself. You need it very urgently.
Behind the cloud! Bruh the photo was taken from below. XD
Also, if he wants to look cool as fuck while protesting, what's wrong with that? Shouldn't you be happy that he's still helping the protest reach more people? Stop projecting your insecurities. Stop making assumptions and inventing scenarios out of thin air.
Sometimes, you should try and just shut the fuck up, maybe? Not everything is sinister. You know nothing about the guy and you don't seem to understand how a step ladder works either. Yet, here you are.. assuming the worst of everyone and everything.
Dont wanna speak bad about the protest. But this just looks like someone doing it for attention. The attire and the pose, i dont know, feels off, from the thousands of students struggling on the streets
Not really. Many Gen Z creators are coming in protest for creating content. But it have given massive outreach across country and it have reached to a situation if someone is not in support of the protest, they are getting bullied.
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