NEET-UG 2024 final results: Number of toppers drop in revised list

The number of top scorers in the NEET-UG exam has dropped significantly from 61 to 17, following the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) announcement of the revised merit list on Friday.This revision was prompted by a recommendation from IIT-Delhi, acting on the Supreme Court’s instructions, which determined that only one of the options in a physics question was correct. Students had previously argued that two of the four options could be considered correct based on different NCERT textbooks. With only one answer now deemed correct, those who chose the other option lost five marks (four for the wrong answer and one negative mark), affecting the rankings of all candidates who sat for the exam.

This decision had a notable impact on the scores of 4.2 lakh candidates, including 44 who initially received perfect scores of 720. These students had selected the answer now considered incorrect by IIT-Delhi and had previously been awarded four marks by the NTA.

“The number of toppers, which stood at 61, will be reduced to 17 after the deduction of marks,” an NTA official had stated earlier.

Initially, 44 out of 67 candidates had been declared toppers with full marks due to the contentious physics question. The number of toppers was later adjusted to 61 after the agency withdrew grace marks previously awarded to six candidates to compensate for lost time at some exam centres.

In a significant setback for unsuccessful NEET-UG 2024 aspirants, the Supreme Court dismissed petitions seeking the cancellation and re-test of the exam. The Court found no evidence of a “systemic breach” that would compromise the exam’s integrity.This verdict provided relief to the NDA government and the NTA, both of which faced severe criticism and protests over alleged malpractices, including question paper leaks, fraud, and impersonation during the May 5 exam. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is currently investigating these allegations and has filed six FIRs.NEET-UG, conducted by the NTA, serves as a gateway for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses in government and private institutions.