In a significant development, the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Postgraduate medical courses (NEET-PG) 2025 has been postponed following a directive from the Supreme Court mandating that the examination be conducted in a single shift. The ruling came in response to a plea challenging the earlier plan to hold the exam in two shifts.
The Supreme Court’s intervention, aimed at ensuring a more transparent and uniform evaluation process, has prompted the National Board of Examinations (NBE) to revise its scheduling and logistics. The NEET PG 2025, initially scheduled for June 15, will now be held on a revised date, which the Board will announce shortly.
Background of the Ruling
The plea before the apex court raised concerns over the fairness of conducting NEET PG in multiple sessions, citing potential disparities in question paper difficulty and flaws in the score normalisation process. It argued that a “just, fair, reasonable, and equitable” assessment could only be ensured if the examination was held in a single shift.
Numerous aspirants had also voiced concerns about the earlier two-shift model, arguing that it undermined the uniformity of assessment and led to uncertainty in rankings due to normalization.
In view of these issues, the Supreme Court directed that the NEET PG 2025 be conducted in a single shift only, thus upholding the principle of equality in high-stakes competitive examinations.
Revised Schedule and Logistics
Following the court’s directive, the NBE is now working to facilitate a single-shift exam across the country by increasing the number of test centres and upgrading support infrastructure.
As a result of the schedule revision, the release of exam city slips—originally due on June 2—and the admit cards—initially slated for June 11—have also been deferred. Fresh dates for both will be notified soon.
Despite the scheduling change, the format of NEET PG 2025 remains unchanged. The exam will be held in English, in computer-based test (CBT) mode, and will consist of 200 multiple choice questions carrying a total of 800 marks. Candidates will be allotted 3 hours and 30 minutes to complete the test.
The NBE has assured all aspirants that efforts are being made to ensure a smooth, fair, and transparent examination process in compliance with the Supreme Court’s directions.
