Concerned over NEET PG 2025 Double-Shifts, Doctors move Health Minister
NEET PG 2025
New Delhi: Raising concerns regarding the National Eligibility-Entrance Test for Postgraduate (NEET-PG) exam being held in double shifts, the doctors have now written to the Union Health Minister, Shri J P Nadda, and sought his intervention in this regard.
Writing to the Minister, the doctors under the Indian Medical Association Junior Doctors' Network (IMA-JDN) pointed out that while the decision to hold NEET PG 2024 in double shifts had to be taken due to a lack of sufficient time to allocate the centres and ensure security protocols, no such problem exists this year.
"We write this letter with the utmost respect and concern on behalf of thousands of NEET-PG aspirants across the country, who are distressed by the recent decision to conduct the NEET-PG 2025 examination in two shifts once again. We humbly wish to bring to your kind attention the issues being faced by candidates due to this policy, and to request your esteemed intervention for greater transparency and fairness in the examination process," the letter mentioned.
"It is pertinent to recall that during the uncertainty around NEET-PG 2024, the reason cited by NBE and NMC for conducting the exam in two shifts was the lack of sufficient time for centre allocation and ensuring security protocols, especially when the exam was rescheduled and over 2 lakh doctors were involved. However, in the current year, there has been no such logistical constraint or last-minute change, and yet the exam is scheduled in two shifts—raising genuine concerns among aspirants," it further added.
Also Read: NEET PG 2025 Registrations begin Today at 3 PM, Exam in two-shifts: NBE
IMA-JDN pointed out the concerns regarding the normalisation method between the two shifts of the NEET PG exam. Referring to the PG medical entrance exam held last year, in which there were allegations regarding the disparity between the two shifts of the exam, the letter mentioned, "The primary issue with the two-shift model is the lack of transparency in the normalisation process. Last year, it was widely observed that Shift 2 was significantly more difficult, leading to disparities in scores and relative rankings. This not only affected the performance of deserving candidates but also created a sense of uncertainty and demoralisation."
"Moreover, aspirants are not provided access to their own answer keys or response sheets, nor are they permitted to challenge discrepancies. Thousands of emails and representations to NBE and NMC have gone unanswered, leaving students helpless and anxious. These diminish the credibility of the examination process," the letter added.
Medical Dialogues reported that doctors across the country were upset over the conduct of the upcoming NEET PG 2025 exam after the NBEMS announced that it would be held in two shifts on June 15, 2025. While the first shift is scheduled from 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM, the second shift is scheduled from 3:30 PM to 7:00 PM.
The doctors expressed their concerns primarily over the normalization process. Even though the normalization formula was introduced for NEET PG 2024 to adjust the scores across different exam shifts to ensure fairness, critics have argued that the process is flawed.
A few candidates who appeared in the second shift of the NEET PG 2024 exam had questioned the normalization formula adopted by NBEMS and further claimed that the board had scammed them in the name of a competitive exam. They pointed out that the Shift 2 paper was tougher compared to Shift 1 and further termed the process of calculating scores as debatable. These concerns were also raised before the Supreme Court, where the aspirants prayed for transparency in the NEET PG 2024 exam.
Recently, a poll conducted by Shiksha.com revealed that when asked about their opinions on the two-shift NEET PG 2025 examination, 89% of the of the respondents in the poll opposed the idea. While 89% of respondents said "No" to the NEET PG exam in two shifts, 9% respondents supported the idea and the remaining 2% were undecided.
Despite the protests and demands from the aspirants to hold the upcoming PG entrance test in a single shift, NBEMS has not yet announced any changes in its plans of holding the exam in double shifts.
Commenting on the matter, the National Secretary of IMA JDN Standing Committee, Dr. Indranil Deshmukh, said, "On behalf of 2 lakhs NEET-PG aspirants, we express serious concern over the decision to conduct NEET-PG 2025 in two shifts, despite the absence of any logistical urgency this year. The lack of transparency in the normalisation process, unequal difficulty levels across shifts, and denial of access to answer keys and response sheets have raised genuine concerns among candidates regarding the fairness of the process. We urge the authorities to consider conducting the exam in a single shift, ensure transparency in score calculation, and expand CBT centres to all districts. A just and transparent process is essential to uphold the credibility of medical education and protect the aspirations of our young doctors."
