More than 11,000 NEET-UG candidates have received zero or negative marks in this year’s controversial medical entrance exam, according to results released by the National Testing Agency (NTA). The lowest score recorded is -180, from a centre in Bihar.

The NTA’s city- and centre-wise results reveal that over 2,250 candidates scored zero marks, while more than 9,400 received negative scores. Some centres, particularly in Jharkhand’s Hazaribagh, have candidates with scores below zero.

While there are multiple instances of candidates scoring zero, the numbers are not clustered at specific centres. Zero marks do not necessarily indicate that no questions were attempted; it may result from a mix of correct answers and penalties for incorrect ones.

In NEET-UG, correct answers earn four marks, incorrect answers deduct one mark, and unattempted questions neither gain nor lose marks.

The NTA’s data release follows allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks. Although some centres have high-performing candidates, such as those in Sikar, where over 2,000 candidates scored above 650 and more than 4,000 scored above 600, the results were released in a detailed drop-down format for each centre.

The Supreme Court, which is overseeing multiple petitions regarding the exam’s conduct, directed the NTA to release results while concealing candidates’ identities to determine if allegedly compromised centres had higher scores compared to others. The court will continue hearings on July 22 to address calls for cancellation, retesting, and an investigation into the alleged malpractices.

Source: PTI

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