PM Modi promised free coaching. Tamil Nadu has tried it with some success

PM Modi promised free coaching. Tamil Nadu has tried it with some success Updated – August 20, 2026 04: 37 pm IST.

Key points

• The VETRI Palligal weekend coaching program reaches an extra 59, 270 day-scholars throughout block centers (representing 17.7% of annual Class 12 administration school graduates).
• Data from the Selection Committee under the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) further illustrates the baseline created by policy interventions under the 7.5% reservation quota.
• Ravindranath, General Secretary of the Doctors Association for Social Equality (DASE), emphasizes that poor students need round-the-clock structural backing rather than sporadic weekend lessons.
• Four students gained seats through the All India Quota and the rest via the 7.5% reservation quota.
• Adhikesavan N, now a first-year medical student at Madras Medical College, spent his high school years preparing for state board exams in a administration school in Kallakurichi.

Individuals stage a protest demanding the scrapping of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), at the Communist Party of India (CPI) state headquarters, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, on July 25, 2026 Photo Credit: PTI.

Adhikesavan N, now a first-year medical student at Madras Medical College, spent his high school years preparing for state board exams in a administration school in Kallakurichi. Like thousands of rural students throughout Tamil Nadu, he excelled at memorising textbook answers to clear Class 12 state board exams, but felt entirely lost when facing the conceptual application required by national competitive entrance tests like NEET. "Facing NEET after a brief ten-day orientation course offered by my school, the paper felt completely foreign, " Mr. Adhikesavan recalls. "It didn't ask me to recall memorised answers; it asked me to apply concepts I had never truly been taught to analyse."

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It was only after moving to Salem, backed by private television sponsors who funded a dedicated drop year, that he learned how to master core concepts, build problem-solving speed, and eliminate wrong options. Mr. Adhikesavan's drop year required external funding to cover costs that typically run between ₹1.5 lakh to ₹2.5 lakh annually, an impossible sum for rural families earning under ₹2.5 lakh per year. "You wouldn't need to go through all that external coaching or struggle so much-you could have simply passed and moved on from Kallakurichi, " he notes, reflecting on his journey. "For students like us preparing for NEET, a solid grasp of concepts is definitely crucial. It would be really helpful to have teachers-specifically those experienced in competitive exams-who can teach the concepts thoroughly for each subject."

To bridge this gap, Tamil Nadu has built a public education ecosystem designed to bring competitive exam coaching directly into state schools. The transformation began with the establishment of residential Model Schools throughout all 38 districts in a phased manner from the 2021-22 academic year. Designed as intensive, fully state-funded academic centers, these campuses pull high-performing administration school candidates into specialised environments. Admitted on merit via the state's Education Management Information System (EMIS), students receive continuous coaching targeting both board exams and national benchmarks alongside smart classrooms, stocked NCERT libraries, digital tablets, and personalised mentorship.

"Around 32 students of the Government Model School in Thuvakudi, Trichy have secured medical seats this academic year, " shares an official associated with the Tamil Nadu Model Schools in the State Education Department. "Four students gained seats through the All India Quota and the rest via the 7.5% reservation quota. They were all selected in their first attempt."

Inside these residential campuses, each class maintains an equal 50: 50 gender split, ensuring young women from rural districts receive equal access to advanced preparation. Crucially, the policy integrates wellness and equity into its core framework. "We cannot elevate our model schools to the level of institutions in Kota, " the Education Department official states. "We have psychologists in each model school. Further, in our timetable, we have earmarked evening hours for either arts or sports. We will not disturb them on Sundays. It was strictly informed to us." To ensure structural inclusivity, the model has enabled 77 Children with Special Needs (CwSN) and dozens of students from Tribal Welfare and Adi Dravidar schools to secure seats in elite institutions.

Recognising that residential campuses could only cater to a fraction of the student population, the state expanded its reach by introducing the VETRI Palligal (Vibrant Education Targeting Reputed Institutions) initiative. "Vetri Palligal was mooted with the idea to replicate the model schools for the benefit of the rest of the students, " the official adds. "It was established targeting every block in the districts. They have classes on Saturdays and Sundays. Additionally, food is sent from the model schools to these students."

Initially introduced in the 2022-23 academic year as a basic career guidance drive to raise awareness among rural students, the state realised that awareness alone was not enough to guarantee results. Building on year-on-year feedback, the program was upgraded into a full-fledged weekend coaching model backed by a state sanction of ₹54.73 crore. Functioning throughout 339 block-level hub schools in 236 blocks, VETRI Palligal now provides 59, 270 day-scholars with 27 structured weekend coaching cycles, 20 assessments throughout ten exam tracks, and meals sent directly from nearby Model Schools. Rather than outsourcing to private commercial vendors, the state trained 6, 598 local administration teachers to act as entrance exam coaches, building long-term academic capability directly inside the public school system.

To put these numbers into perspective against Tamil Nadu's larger education landscape-where almost 3.35 lakh candidates graduate from administration high schools annually accounting for some 45% of all Class 12 graduates-the 38 elite residential Model Schools accommodate 11, 885 students (representing 3.5% of annual Class 12 administration school graduates). Meanwhile, the VETRI Palligal weekend coaching program reaches an extra 59, 270 day-scholars throughout block centers (representing 17.7% of annual Class 12 administration school graduates).

Digital interventions play a structural role in modernising pedagogy throughout both frameworks. According to filings submitted to the SKOCH Exhibition, an independent think tank focusing on socio-economic problems and inclusive expansion, on Tamil Nadu Model Schools Society, Model Schools utilise the statewide Manarkeni app for animated concept videos and past papers, backed by data-driven learning loops through the state's Education Management Information System (EMIS) that allow teachers to track progress and adjust exam strategies in real time.

In contrast, the report submitted to the SKOCH Exhibition on VETRI Palligal highlights how block centers deploy an aptitude-first talent mapping model via the Naan Mudalvan platform before coaching begins. To combat the digital infrastructure deficits and uneven connectivity present in remote rural blocks, VETRI Palligal relies on a blended learning model, pairing expert sessions with downloadable offline content packages and local teacher mentorship.

To ensure these academic interventions convert into actual college seats, Tamil Nadu enacted a policy offering a 7.5% horizontal reservation in professional courses for students who studied in administration schools from Classes 6 to 12. Under this framework, the state absorbs 100% of tuition, hostel, and mess fees in both public and private colleges. Together, these combined strategies earned the state recognition from the national SKOCH Group, tracking a 17-fold growth in administration school placements into premier national institutions over four years, growing from 75 annual admissions to over 1, 340. Cumulatively, 2, 317 administration school graduates have secured seats throughout 93 elite institutions, including 41 admissions to Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), 448 qualifiers in JEE Main, and 17 fully funded international university scholarships.

Comparing the performance of residential Model Schools and weekend VETRI Palligal centers demonstrates the impact of round-the-clock academic backing. While VETRI Palligal reaches over 59, 000 day-scholars throughout block hubs, it yielded 151 premier non-medical admissions in the 2024-25 academic year. In contrast, the 38 residential Model Schools back approximately 11, 885 students statewide, yet account for a vastly disproportionate share of top-tier engineering, medical, and central institute selections. SKOCH evaluations highlight the distinct operational friction faced by day-scholars: balancing board exam schedules with weekend preparation, complex application management throughout multiple entrance tests, time constraints on regular teachers, and a lack of academic mentorship at home.

"We are facing strong competition from repeaters who take a year-long break to prepare for NEET, " the Education Department official admits. "They have to focus only on one exam. But our students have to manage both the board exams and the competitive exams."

Out of Tamil Nadu's total capacity of 13, 050 MBBS seats throughout 79 administration and private medical colleges, the 7.5% horizontal reservation quota guarantees a dedicated slice for administration school candidates, translating to 510 MBBS allotments in the 2026-27 session. This allocation represents roughly 3.9% of all medical seats in the state, matching the 7.5% quota applied specifically to seats governed by state allocation rules.

Data from the Selection Committee under the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) further illustrates the baseline created by policy interventions under the 7.5% reservation quota. In the 2024-25 academic year, out of 3, 501 eligible administration school candidates who qualified, 622 were allotted medical seats, comprising 496 MBBS and 126 BDS. As awareness expanded, the eligible candidate pool grew to 7, 886, securing 612 allotted seats with 494 MBBS and 118 BDS, in 2025-26. By the 2026-27 session, the pipeline stabilised with 3, 625 eligible candidates securing 614 total seats, broken down into 510 MBBS and 104 BDS allocations.

Evaluating the limitations of non-residential setups, Dr. G. R. Ravindranath, General Secretary of the Doctors Association for Social Equality (DASE), emphasizes that poor students need round-the-clock structural backing rather than sporadic weekend lessons. "From the beginning, DASE has demanded free coaching centers with residential and mess facilities for underprivileged students at every district headquarters, " notes Dr. Ravindranath. "While the coaching centers began previously were a welcome step, their operational standard needs drastic improvement. With NEET now extended to nursing and paramedical courses at central institutes-including the upcoming AIIMS Madurai-our students need quality preparation to secure these seats. Beyond weekend classes, the state must expand full-fledged Model Schools to every taluk to prepare administration school students for national-level entrance exams like JEE, NEET, and ICAR."

Dr. Ravindranath points out that fixing the coaching pipeline requires systemic reforms directly inside regular administration classrooms, starting from middle school. "Addressing the root cause requires sweeping structural changes inside government schools-filling all vacant teacher positions, conducting periodic teacher training, and teaching students conceptual, MCQ-based problem-solving right from the upper primary levels, " Dr. Ravindranath explains. "In today's reality, competitive exams dictate entry into higher education and jobs, and our state curriculum must continuously evolve to meet those standards. It is concerning that the state administration has reduced the school education budget by almost ₹2, 000 crore compared to the previous financial year; higher education requires rose funding, not budget cuts."

To protect poor families from financial exploitation in the private market, Dr. Ravindranath calls for strict state regulation over private academies and entrance fee structures. "Commercial coaching centers must be brought directly under strict government control, registration, and fee regulation, " Dr. Ravindranath states. "Under current NMC regulations, state fee committees can only cap tuition fees for 50% of private seats, leaving the remaining half vulnerable to exorbitant pricing. The NMC Act must be amended to allow 100% state regulation of tuition fees in private and deemed universities. Coupled with strict enforcement of anti-capitation fee laws and hassle-free, unconditional educational loans from nationalized banks, we can prevent private academies from exploiting aspiring medical students."

Despite the commercialisation of competitive coaching, policy interventions like the 7.5% horizontal reservation remain a vital lifeline. "The 7.5% horizontal reservation has created a tangible social impact, a policy initiative DASE initiated and fought for since 2005 through continuous representations to state and central leaders, " Dr. Ravindranath notes. "Nevertheless, given the actual demographics, this quota should be expanded to 10%, alongside a distinct reservation category for government-aided school students who come from similarly disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. Furthermore, once these students secure admission, they perform exceptionally well academically in MBBS; medical education is a social process, and our administration school candidates are thriving in peer environments and serving in public healthcare."

Tracking from medical colleges confirms that once inside MBBS classrooms, 7.5% quota beneficiaries perform on par with general merit peers. Transforming public classrooms from spaces of memorization into centers of conceptual learning ensures that passing national entrance tests becomes a natural outcome of daily schooling, rather than an uphill struggle relying on private drop years.

In short, PM Modi promised free coaching. Tamil Nadu has tried it with some is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.