The NTA announced on Saturday that a four-member panel established by the education ministry will reassess the grace marks given to over 1,500 candidates in the NEET-UG medical entrance exam. The NTA stated that the integrity of this year’s NEET examination was maintained, dismissing allegations of irregularities in the results announced on June 4.
“The issue pertains to only about 1,600 candidates at six centres,” Subodh Kumar Singh, the director general of the NTA, said in a press conference on Saturday.
A total of 1,563 students received grace marks attributed to “loss of exam time.” The director general of the NTA stated that the awarding of these marks did not affect the qualifying criteria of the exam, and the review of results for the impacted candidates will not disrupt the admission process. The committee is expected to provide recommendations within a week, and the results of these students may be revised accordingly.
Following allegations of irregularities in the examination results, numerous NEET-UG aspirants and members of the Opposition raised concerns. The scrutiny intensified when an unprecedented 67 students achieved a perfect score of 720 out of 720 marks. Further suspicions arose when it was revealed that six of these students hailed from the same exam center in Haryana.
Singh mentioned that some students claimed they had insufficient time to complete the exam due to the center superintendent’s actions. He explained that the decision to grant grace marks was influenced by a 2018 Supreme Court ruling.
“In 2018, a Supreme Court ruling established a framework for addressing grievances related to time loss during exams. According to this ruling, compensation can be provided based on a specific formula. The committee’s decision to award grace marks aimed to address these grievances by increasing everyone’s scores,” Singh stated.
Regarding concerns about achieving scores of 718 and 719, Singh clarified that this was feasible not due to the traditional +4-1 negative marking system, but rather because of the scaling formula in place.
Allegations have been made against the NEET-UG 2024 exam regarding irregularities and controversies.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) Junior Doctors Network has raised concerns about the NEET-UG 2024 exam, particularly regarding the scoring of 718 and 719 marks. They have called for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry and requested a re-examination.
In a letter to NTA Chairperson Pradeep Kumar Joshi, the IMA Junior Doctors Network highlighted the statistical improbability of students scoring 718 and 719 marks, questioning the lack of clear explanation for the grace marks awarded to these students.
The letter also mentioned allegations of NEET 2024 paper leaks in multiple locations and criticized the lack of action taken. It criticized the NTA for not disclosing the provision for grace marks due to time wastage in the exam information bulletin beforehand and questioned the introduction of this new rule after the examination had taken place.
According to the letter, discrepancies were found in the marks students received on their scorecards compared to their OMR sheets. These discrepancies were not related to grace marks, as the affected students were not from the centers where grace marks were supposedly given.
Dr. Indranil Deshmukh, the national convener of the IMA Junior Doctors Network, argued that it was implausible for students to achieve scores of 718-719 due to the impact of the negative marking system.
Several state governments, including Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, have raised concerns about the marking process and have requested a re-examination. The NEET exam took place on May 5 at 4,750 centers across 571 cities. Over 20.38 lakh students registered for the exam, with 11.45 lakh candidates qualifying. There are more than 80,000 MBBS seats available in over 540 medical colleges in the country
