An English-to-Marathi dictionary to aid students preparing for NEET

PUNE: To make medical education more accessible to vernacular medium students preparing for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), Pune-based LFU (Lift for Upliftment) has launched an English-to-Marathi dictionary catering to the science syllabus of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT)

PUNE: To make medical education more accessible to vernacular medium students preparing for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), Pune-based LFU (Lift for Upliftment) has launched an English-to-Marathi dictionary catering to the science syllabus of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

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While students can appear for the NEET in the Marathi language, there are no textbooks or reference books available in Marathi. LFU – which provides free coaching for NEET to deserving underprivileged students – realised that language is becoming a barrier for students from tribal and rural areas who otherwise have the potential to get admission in government medical colleges.

Dr Farooque Faras, vice president of LFU, said, “As per government statistics, exactly 31,239 students had opted to appear for NEET in the Marathi language in 2019. Sadly however, there is no textbook or reference book in the Marathi language.”

Dr Santosh Chate, who was teaching LFU students in Melghat last year said, “Tribal students do not look at English with ease and comfort. There is a lot of fear in their mind when it comes to English. Many even drop the idea of pursuing a medical education because of the language barrier. Last year, we had to take a lot of effort while teaching them and making them understand Marathi and tribal languages. Next year, we are also planning to add tribal languages like Korku and Gondi to the dictionary.”

The English-to-Marathi dictionary has the Marathi equivalents of all English words mentioned in the chemistry and biology books of NCERT Classes 11 and 12. While medical education has become expensive, it has also become difficult for students belonging to humble backgrounds to train themselves for the NEET.