NEET row: Young dreams destroyed

This means the remaining 21 first rankers, despite being toppers, will not get a medical seat in AIIMS, New Delhi.

Hyderabad: The results of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET)-2024 for admission into MBBS courses have crushed the dreams of meritorious, hardworking students from Telangana and other parts of the country.

These students had prepared systematically but could not secure a free medical seat in government medical colleges despite scoring high marks.

---

By approximate count, there could be anywhere between 10,000 and 20,000, and even more such deserving meritorious students, across the country who might have lost out on medical seats due to the haphazard way in which the NEET- 2024 results were released.

The total marks in the examination, which is conducted every year in offline mode by the National Testing Agency (NTA), is 720, of which those students who scored 630-640 till last year were bound to get anywhere between 10,000 and 14,000 all-India rank, thus ensuring that they would get an MBBS seat in a government medical college of their choice.

This year, however, for the first time in NEET’s history, the NTA decided to provide grace marks to a select few candidates, which led to a high number of 100 per cent scores, i.e. many candidates got 720 out of 720 marks, resulting in highcut offs.

For instance, there are only 46 general category free seats in country’s premier All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, which is the most sought-after medical college in the country. However, this year there are 67 first rank holders, who have scored 720 out of 720 marks.

This means the remaining 21 first rankers, despite being toppers, will not get a medical seat in AIIMS, New Delhi.

In last year’s NEET, if a candidate scored 640 marks out of 720, he more or else had a confirmed MBBS seat in a government medical college by securing about 10,000th rank.

However, this year, those scoring 640 or event 650 out of 720 ended up with a rank of 40,000 and more, thus crushing their hope of free seat in a government medical college.

This year, out of the blue, the NTA decided to give grace marks to students.

“The NTA did not clarify how or what was the basis on which the grace marks were allocated. Even after releasing the results, they did not reveal that grace marks were added. They were forced to provide details about it only after many started asking questions on how 67 students can get first rank, which has never happened in the history of NEET,” experts familiar with the exam said.