Noida: In any other year, armed with 650 marks in the NEET exam, 23-year-old Surbhi Singh would have been preparing for her admission into King George’s Medical University in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. But this year, it is just not enough. “I feel like I have failed,” she said.
Surbhi isn’t sure if she will get admission into any government college for her MBBS course. There are 67 candidates who have scored 100 percent in NEET 2024 exams. And that has left lakhs of young students and parents anxious and dejected. Some are protesting online; others are preparing to move court for legal action. But students like Surbhi have returned to their textbooks to study for the next NEET exam.
“I packed all my books after my exam on 5th May. I was very happy and positive after matching the answer key. Now, I am getting my books out of the bags, mentally preparing myself to study again as the exam might be held again,” she said, seated outside her one-room house in Noida, where her whole family lives.
The beleaguered National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) has been marred with cheating controversies, allegations of paper leaks, irregularities in final scores, and mismanaged examination centres ever since it began in 2013. One of the biggest examinations conducted in India, the annual common medical entrance test has been contested by students, politicians and educationists. In Tamil Nadu, at least 16 students so far have died by suicide. Chief Minister MK Stalin has repeatedly called NEET UG “anti-poor” and “discriminatory”. In a post on X (Twitter) last week, he exhorted people to “join hands to eradicate this malady”.
“640-650 is a great score in NEET. Last year, with these marks, students would have got 10,000 ranks, but now they are getting 30,000-40,000 ranks,” said Alakh Pandey, owner of Physics Wallah, who has filed a PIL on this issue in the Supreme Court.
“The system has failed the students. They don’t have any faith left in NTA anymore,” he added.
A mess in test results
Surbhi Singh spent two years in Kota, which was a significant financial strain on her family. Last year, she scored 610 marks and ranked 23,000, yet she could not secure a college seat even after the final round of counselling. Her father, who works at a private company, struggled to support her financially. She completed her Class 12 in 2018 but managed to get coaching only in the last two years.
She is among the 24 lakh students who applied for the NEET exam this year. It took a lot of effort and hard work to score 650, yet even these marks are not enough, as an unprecedented 67 students scored a perfect 720 out of 720.
640-650 is a great score in NEET. Last year, with these marks, students would have got 10,000 ranks, but now they are getting 30,000-40,000 ranks
— Alakh Pandey, owner of Physics Wallah
Lakhs of students apply for the NEET exam annually. In the past seven years, the number of applicants has doubled from 12 lakh in 2017 to nearly 24 lakh in 2024. However, the NEET 2024 exam has been marred by unprecedented issues, including paper leaks, grace marks, an unusual number of perfect scores, and a drastic increase in the cut-off compared to the previous year. Coaching institutes, doctors, and opposition leaders are raising their voices over the irregularities, which has caused stress, confusion, and frustration among students. Hopeless students and parents are now seeking options to find justice. Social media is flooded with complaints. The National Testing Agency (NTA) has denied the paper leak allegations, and the matter has reached the Supreme Court.
The NEET 2024 results were released on 4 June, ten days before the scheduled date. While 67 students scored perfect marks, there were reports of students receiving mathematically impossible scores of 717, 718, and 719. The NTA awarded grace marks to 1,563 students, saying it was either to compensate for lost time at some centres or because of the issues arising from the old and new NCERT textbooks used by students. But Maheshwar Peri, CEO of Careers360, rubbishes these justifications.
“This problem isn’t about those 1,563 students. Marks of 1,500-1,600 students cannot make such big changes in the ranks. The NTA is hiding far too much of what is the truth. NEET (UG) 2024 is a scam. A lot is being hidden. The ultimate sufferers are the students,” Peri said.
Students are discovering new irregularities every day. Surbhi Singh mentioned a case where a student scored 715 marks in NEET but failed her 12th board exams.
“How is it even possible? Such news is making our argument strong that something big has happened in the result,” she said.
Marks of 1,500-1,600 students cannot make such big changes in the ranks. The NTA is hiding far too much of what is the truth. NEET (UG) 2024 is a scam. A lot is being hidden
— Maheshwar Peri, CEO of Careers360
Dr Vivek Pandey, an RTI activist, has formed a group of students and filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court, demanding the cancellation of the exam and a re-conduct. His posts on X draw huge support from students.
“The real issue is the paper leak, but some coaching institutes divert it to the issue of grace marks,” he said, pointing to media reports about alleged question paper leak in Patna as well as complaints of proxies taking the exams in Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Delhi, and Gujarat. He also dismisses the NTA argument about using the same method as the CLAT exam when awarding the grace marks, saying their formats are different—CLAT is an online examination while NEET is conducted at offline centres.
“Paper leaks are not something new in NEET, but the increase in marks and ranks suggests that something has happened at a big level. This should be investigated,” he said.
The results have also raised concerns about seat allocation. AIIMS Delhi, which is preferred by many students, has 125 MBBS seats—46 for general category, 32 for OBC, 18 for SC, and 9 for ST category students. Peri highlighted how there is a possibility that some of the all-India toppers may not get a seat in AIIMS Delhi.
Paper leaks are not something new in NEET, but the increase in marks and ranks suggests that something has happened at a big level. This should be investigated
— Dr Vivek Pandey, RTI activist
In Haryana, six students from the same centre secured AIR-1 with their application numbers in ascending order. What further fuelled suspicions was the announcement of the results 10 days before the scheduled date.
“Very clearly, they wanted lesser scrutiny with the nation busy with the election results,” Peri said.
The endless struggle of aspirants
Twenty-year-old Kashish Gupta scored an impressive 670 marks. While her coaching institutes celebrated her achievement by distributing sweets and organising a celebration, she did not attend the event. Despite scoring such good marks, she was not happy.
“I am extremely disappointed by the result. I worked hard for this score. Still, my rank is 14,000. I won’t be able to get my dream college. I would have to settle for a GMC (government medical college) in some state. I don’t know what to do anymore,” said Gupta, who had scored 599 marks the previous year.
Initially, Gupta was very happy when she saw her results. After matching her answers with the answer key, she was expecting a good score. When NTA released the results early, she was overjoyed to see her score of 670. In excitement, she shared a screenshot with her friends, but their replies left her in shock.
“But this can’t be right, your rank is 14,622,” one of her friends wrote in their WhatsApp group.
“I could not believe it. But I had to believe it because I downloaded the result from the official website. Usually, with 670 marks, you get a 2,800-3,000 rank. You can say that the exam was easy and that there were more candidates. It could increase the rank from 3,000 to 6,000. But 14,000?” said Gupta.
While Kashish Gupta will secure admission to a college, it is not something she had dreamed after sacrificing her daily sleep routine.
“I slept only six hours in the last two years. I stopped studying only when my eyes closed, and that was when I was asleep. I studied so hard, and yet, I can’t get what I deserve,” she said with disappointment.
Usually, with 670 marks, you get a 2,800-3,000 rank. You can say that the exam was easy and that there were more candidates. It could increase the rank from 3,000 to 6,000. But 14,000?
— Kashish Gupta, NEET aspirant
Another student, Divya Kumari, was so confident in her performance that she started referring to herself as a doctor after taking the exam. Although she did score well, with 656 marks, her rank fell in the 25,000s.
“She is not talking to me. She has locked herself in her room. She studied so hard, and with this result, she got nothing. This isn’t just her; many are in the same situation,” one of her relatives said.
The aftermath of the NEET 2024 results has been tragic, with reports of at least three students dying by suicide. Many are protesting or have lost hope, while others are ready to take the exam again. But a few have lost the spirit to study again.
“I feel like I didn’t fail this exam, but the system has failed me,” said 20-year-old Garvit Kumar, who scored 617 marks on his second attempt, dropping two years after Class 12.
Surbhi Singh’s story reflects the struggles of many aspirants. Her family of four lives in a one-room apartment, with three large bags filled with books occupying a significant space. Despite their modest living conditions, including a single bed, a small mandir, a small cooler, and an old table fan for guests, her family ensured she could focus on her studies without compromising her education.
“My parents never questioned my decision to take the exam again and again. It’s not just me; my entire family struggled with me. I did what I had to, but even after all that, I got nothing,” Singh said, bursting into tears.
Some political support, strained friendships
Surbhi Singh is part of a Telegram group with more than 4,000 members. Every small piece of news and update is shared here. With every notification, there is new information. Sometimes, it’s a post on X by Rahul Gandhi or Priyanka Gandhi; other times, there is some news coverage of the NEET issue.
“After seeing the result, I was disappointed and so joined Twitter for support. That’s when I found pages of a few doctors, and got connected with the groups that are spreading awareness about the NEET scam,” said Singh.
From Rahul Gandhi to Randeep Surjewala to Priyanka Gandhi, many political leaders have written about this issue on Twitter. On Monday, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra shared a video of a student whose result was not released by the NTA because her OMR sheet was torn. However, she asked for her OMR sheet from the NTA and found that she had scored 715 marks in the NEET exam.
“Lakhs of children prepare hard for exams like NEET and spend the most precious moments of their lives in this preparation. The entire family puts their faith and strength in this effort. But year after year, paper leaks and result-related irregularities have come to light in these examinations,” Gandhi wrote on X.
The inboxes of doctors and medical influencers like Vivek Pandey and Dr Dhruv Chauhan are filled with students’ concerns and questions.
“Sir, will they conduct the exam again?” “Please raise our voice, sir.” “A lot of mismanagement happened at our centre too, sir.” These were some of the messages received by the doctors.
The integrity of the examination was not compromised at all. Only one question affected the students this time. Out of 1,563 students who were reassessed, 790 students qualified. Thirteen lakh students are overall qualified. Those who have been compensated with grace marks have not affected the overall percentage of marks
— Subodh Kumar Singh, chief of NTA
Pandey’s timeline on X is filled with news related to NEET and the mismanagement that happened. He is actively working on this issue, updating the students through his posts.
“Our petition seeking to cancel the NEET-UG 2024 exam over the alleged paper leak… Listed for tomorrow. A vacation bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta will hear the matter. Hope for the best,” read one of his posts.
The NTA has not cleared the doubts of students and still maintains there was no paper leak. But a high-powered panel is looking into the alleged discrepancies and will submit recommendations in a week.
“The NEET examination is one of the biggest exams in the world conducted in a single shift and was affected due to the late distribution of question papers at some exam centres, which resulted in the loss of time allotted to students appearing for it,” said Subodh Kumar Singh, chief of NTA.
“We denied reports on 6 May that the paper had been leaked. The integrity of the examination was not compromised at all. Only one question affected the students this time. Out of 1,563 students who were reassessed, 790 students qualified. Thirteen lakh students are overall qualified. Those who have been compensated with grace marks have not affected the overall percentage of marks,” he added.
The NTA has said that based on time lost and wrong answers, grace marks were given to students, but the grace marks were separate for each student.
“This depends on the overall performance of students in the examination. The NTA has been trying to strengthen NEET protocols to ensure that the issue is not repeated,” said Singh.
For Kashish Gupta and her four friends, the future remains uncertain. Their friendships are strained, and they say they feel let down by the BJP government’s silence on the matter.
“A few days ago, I was invited to a news channel to speak on this issue. All of them said no when I asked them to come. They said, ‘It’s easy for you to speak because you will get into college’,” said Kashish.
Kashish and Surbhi were making plans with their friends about which college they would choose; now they are back to square one.
“I will have to see which subject I have to study again,” said Surbhi, showing her books and notes.
(Edited by Prashant)