Full Breakdown
Supreme Court Pushes Comprehensive Reforms in India’s NEET Examination System
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Court Orders Institutionalisation and Cut-off Revision
A two-judge bench of Justices P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe directed the Union government to institutionalise the process for conducting the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET). The bench also asked the joint secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training to file an affidavit on steps taken so far. In the same hearing, the Centre announced it would lower the qualifying percentile for the NEET-Super Speciality (NEET-SS) round from the 50th to the 30th percentile to address unfilled seats.
Background & Context
NEET, administered by the National Testing Agency (NTA) since 2017, faced a paper-leak in the 2026 NEET-UG cycle. The government formed a task force headed by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani, building on an earlier committee chaired by former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan. The Supreme Court has also been hearing petitions over persistent vacancies in super-speciality postgraduate seats after two counselling rounds.
Data & Statistics
- Vacant super-speciality seats: 1,857 after the second counselling round (1,094 DM/MCh and 763 DNB-SS).
- Eligibility expansion: Reducing the percentile to the 30th is projected to add roughly 6,000 candidates, creating a pool about three times larger than the vacant seats.
- Tamil Tamil Nadu in-service seats: 40 of the 151 seats earmarked for state doctors will be returned for a one-week stray-vacancy round.
- Timeline: The Centre proposes completing the national Special Stray Vacancy Round within two weeks of the state round’s conclusion.
Official Statements & Responses
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the Nilekani panel has completed “exhaustive consultations” and is likely to submit its first interim report by the end of September.
- Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati noted that lowering the NEET-SS percentile would bring approximately 6,000 candidates into the counselling pool.
- The judges expressed intent to visit the upgraded NTA facility and clarified that candidates who have already secured seats will not be permitted to upgrade in the special round.
What’s Next
- Nilekani panel interim report: Expected by the end of September, outlining recommendations for a permanent institutional framework for NEET.
- Supreme Court visit to NTA: On-site inspection of the upgraded facility to verify staffing and processes.
- Special Stray Vacancy Round: The Medical Counselling Committee will conduct the national round within two weeks after the Tamil Tamil Nadu state round, aiming to fill the 1,857 vacant super-speciality seats.