Nearly 1 lakh more candidates eligible after NEET-PG 2025 cut-offs revised, govt tells SC

Nearly one lakh candidates have been made eligible for NEET PG counselling since cut-offs were lowered to 0 percentile and negative marks. The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) informed the Supreme Court of India that as many as 95,913 additional candidates have become eligible for NEET PG 2025 counselling after the qualifying cut-off was lowered. A bench of justices P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe had earlier, on February 4, issued a notice to the Centre, asking to file an affidavit explaining the motive behind the lowering of cut-offs. In its response to the Public Interest Litigation challenging the January 13, 2026, notice, the examination body placed on record detailed category-wise data elaborating on the impact of the revised percentile criteria, stating that the change has substantially expanded the pool of eligible candidates for the ongoing counselling process. In its response, the Board has clarified that the petitioners’ plea seeking quashing of the January 13 notice is ‘misconceived.’ NBEMS stated that once the cut-off percentile was revised, a total of 2,24,029 candidates qualified under the new criteria, compared to 1,28,116 under the earlier threshold, thereby resulting in 95,913 additional eligible candidates. The Board has submitted that any interference at this stage would directly affect these candidates, who are not parties before the Court, and on that ground alone, the petition deserves dismissal. The response also refers to an earlier challenge before the High Court of Delhi — Sanchit Seth vs National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences & Ors — where the impugned notice dated January 13 was raised. In its final order dated January 21, 2026, the High Court declined to interfere with the decision to reduce the eligibility criteria. The judgment recorded that the apprehension expressed by the petitioner regarding public health risks and dilution of standards was ‘unfounded’ and not supported by any empirical study on the availability of candidates, in relation to vacant postgraduate seats. The Court held that “there was no perversity in the decision-making process,” which would require judicial interference in the ongoing counselling rounds. In its affidavit before the apex court, NBEMS has similarly contended that the petitioners’ claim that lowering the percentile would endanger public health, promote mediocrity, or violate constitutional obligations under Article 47 is without factual foundation. It submitted that the allegation of an “irreversible health risk” is speculative and unsupported by data. Category-wise figures placed on record by NBEMS indicate that in the General category, out of 1,07,990 candidates who appeared, 59,996 had qualified under the earlier criteria, while 1,01,914 qualify under the revised cut-off, resulting in 41,918 additional candidates. In the OBC category, 81,721 candidates appeared; 49,049 had earlier qualified, and 81,713 now qualify, adding 32,664 candidates. Among SC candidates, of 28,100 who appeared, 14,390 had qualified earlier, and 28,100 now qualify, adding 13,710 candidates. In the ST category, 12,303 candidates appeared; 4,681 had earlier qualified, while 12,302 now qualify, adding 7,621 candidates. In total, 2,30,114 candidates appeared for NEET PG 2025, 1,28,116 had qualified under the earlier benchmark, and 2,24,029 stand qualified under the revised percentile, reflecting an increase of 95,913 candidates. ## Category-wise data as per NBEMS response Category | Candidates Appeared | Qualified Earlier | Qualified Revised | Additional Qualified General | 107,990 | 59,996 | 101,914 | 41,918 OBC | 81,721 | 49,049 | 81,713 | 32,664 SC | 28,100 | 14,390 | 28,100 | 13,710 ST | 12,303 | 4,681 | 12,302 | 7,621 Total | 230,114 | 128,116 | 224,029 | 95,913 The petition has now been listed for hearing on February 23, 2026, after being mentioned before the SC today for urgent hearing of the matter, by Advocate Satyam Singh Rajput on behalf of the petitioners. Deepto Banerjee is a journalist with The Indian Express, where he currently serves as a senior sub-editor. He extensively writes on topics like education, policy, employment, study-abroad trends, student affairs, and career-related issues, among others. He holds a postgraduate diploma in English Journalism from the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) New Delhi. Before joining Indian Express Digital, Deepto was with The Times of India, where he covered a broad spectrum of topics, from education and student welfare to educational policies. Outside of work, he has a passion for photography. Reach out to him via X, or LinkedIn. ... Read More