NTA declares final NEET-UG results, number of toppers down to 17 from 61
New Delhi: The National Testing Agency (NTA) released the final results of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2024 on Friday. The revised results have brought significant changes to the rankings and scores of thousands of candidates.
In stark contrast to the initial results announced on June 4, which saw an unprecedented 67 students achieving perfect scores, the final tally now stands at just 17 candidates sharing the top rank with 720 marks. This dramatic reduction comes after the Supreme Court’s intervention, which led to the invalidation of a controversial physics question and a subsequent recalibration of scores for all 23 lakh test-takers.
The revision process has had far-reaching effects, with at least 420,000 students, including 44 of the original 61 top scorers, seeing their marks decrease by five points. This adjustment has resulted in a reshuffling of the merit list, affecting the prospects of many aspiring medical students across the country.
The qualifying cutoffs have also seen a marginal dip. For unreserved and economically weaker sections, the new cutoff range is 720-162, down from the previous 164. Similarly, for OBC, SC, and ST categories, the cutoff now stands at 161-127. These changes have led to a slight decrease in the total number of qualified candidates, now standing at 1,315,853, a reduction of 415 from the previous count. Despite the overall decrease, some states have seen an increase in their qualified candidates. Uttar Pradesh continues to lead with over 165,000 qualifiers, followed by Maharashtra and Rajasthan with 142,000 and 121,000 respectively. Other states with significant numbers include Karnataka and Kerala, each boasting over 85,000 qualified candidates.
The gender distribution among top performers has shown a positive shift, with the percentage of female toppers increasing from 16 per cent to 23 per cent in the revised results. Among the top 100 candidates, 22 per cent are female.
The geographical distribution of top performers is diverse, with four candidates from Rajasthan, three from Maharashtra, and two each from Delhi and Uttar Pradesh among the 17 toppers. The remaining top scorers hail from Kerala, Chandigarh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Bihar, and West Bengal.
This final revision comes in the wake of multiple controversies surrounding NEET-UG 2024. Allegations of paper leaks, impersonation, and other malpractices led to widespread protests and legal challenges.
However, the Supreme Court dismissed pleas for a retest, stating that there was insufficient evidence to conclude that the exam was “vitiated” due to a “systemic breach” of its sanctity.
The court’s decision, while providing closure to the exam process, has also sparked debates about the integrity of high-stakes competitive exams in India. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched probes into alleged irregularities, having filed six FIRs related to the exam.
