Will implement recommendations of expert panel on NEET-UG exam, Centre tells SC

The Centre on Thursday told the Supreme Court that it will implement all the measures recommended by an expert panel that reviewed the National Testing Agency's functioning in holding NEET-UG last year.

“We are going to implement all the recommendations and it (matter) can be listed after six months,” Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a Bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Manoj Misra, which posted the matter for April.

The Bench was told that the entire report of the expert panel had not been placed on record as it contained certain details on the printing of questions.

Around 24 lakh students appeared for controversy-ridden NEET-UG 2024 Examination conducted on May 5 by the National Testing Agency (NTA) across 4,750 centres in 511 cities and 14 centres abroad for admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other related courses in more than 700 government and private institutions to fill 1.08 lakh seats.

Ending weeks of uncertainty over admission to undergraduate medical courses across India, the Supreme Court had on July 23, 2024 refused to cancel NEET-UG 2024 Examination and order a re-test, saying there was absence of material on the record to suggest a systemic breach of sanctity of the examination held on May 5. A detailed written order was released on August 2, 2024.

“We are of the considered view that ordering the cancellation of the entire NEET UG 2024 exam is not justified on application of settled principles propounded by the decisions of this court on the basis of material on record,” the top court had said.

The top court had also expanded the remit of the seven-member expert panel, headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Radhakrishnan, to review the functioning of the NTA and recommend exam reforms to make the NEET-UG, transparent and free from malpractices.

Holding that there was no error in its verdict, the Supreme Court had dismissed a petition seeking review of its verdict refusing to allow a fresh NEET-UG 2024 examination.