NEET PG 2025 Single Shift- a 'Win for Fairness, Transparency'! Doctors Hail Supreme Court Ruling
NEET PG 2025
New Delhi: Since the National Board of Examination (NBE) announced its decision to hold the National Eligibility-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2025 examination in two shifts, doctors and medical aspirants have been opposing the move. The doctors filed pleas before the Supreme Court and cited concerns regarding the double-shift examination and the normalisation formula.
Finally, on May 30, the Supreme Court, in a landmark decision, held that holding the NEET PG exam in two shifts would lead to arbitrariness and would not give a level playing field to the candidates.
With this observation, the top court bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and NK Anjaria directed the National Board of Examination to make arrangements for holding the NEET PG 2025 exam, scheduled for 15th June 2025, in a single shift. The bench even allowed NBE to apply for an extension of time if the Board failed to find adequate number of exam centres on time.
The Apex Court's ruling was wholeheartedly welcomed by the members of the medical fraternity, who are calling it a step towards transparency and fairness.
One of the pleas before the Supreme Court was filed by the United Doctors' Front (UDF). Speaking to Medical Dialogues, the National President of UDF, Dr. Lakshya Mittal, called the SC ruling a crucial decision that upholds the principles of fairness and equal opportunity for all postgraduate medical aspirants.
"The Supreme Court's ruling on the petition filed by the United Doctors Front is a momentous occasion. It validates our persistent advocacy for a transparent and equitable examination process. This single-shift directive will ensure that all candidates are assessed under the same conditions," Dr. Mittal said.
"We extend our sincere gratitude to the Hon'ble Supreme Court for recognising the merits of our petition and delivering this just outcome. This victory is a testament to the collective voice of the medical fraternity, championed by the United Doctors Front, in the pursuit of fairness," he added.
Commenting on the matter, National General Secretary of UDF, Dr. Arun Kumar, termed the verdict as not just a legal triumph, but also a "validation of our collective fight for fairness, transparency, and justice in medical education."
"I extend my heartfelt gratitude to our UDF team for standing strong, united, and relentless throughout this journey. Your voice, dedication, and clarity of purpose made this possible. A special note of thanks to our legal warrior, Advocate Satyam Singh, whose unwavering commitment and sharp advocacy in court ensured that the concerns of thousands of young doctors were heard, respected, and upheld," he added.
Medical Associations, including FORDA, FAIMA, and IMA-JDN, had earlier raised concerns regarding the decision to conduct the exam in two shifts.
Hailing the top court's order, the President of the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA), Dr. Aviral Mathur, told Medical Dialogues, "This is a significant step toward ensuring fairness, transparency, and integrity in the postgraduate medical entrance process."
Dr. Mathur mentioned how FORDA had also raised concerns regarding the conduct of NEET PG exam in multiple shifts, questioned its necessity, and highlighted the challenges in maintaining uniformity in assessment and merit ranking.
"Despite these concerns, we were dismayed to see the National Board of Examinations (NBE) continue the same pattern this year. This ruling comes as a much-needed course correction and affirms our long-standing position that a common question paper and uniform evaluation are critical to uphold merit-based admissions. We urge the authorities to ensure robust logistical planning and timely execution so that candidates across the country are assessed on a level playing field," he told Medical Dialogues, further stressing FORDA's unwavering commitment to work with all stakeholders to promote a just and transparent medical education system in India.
The Secretary to FORDA, Dr. Meet Ghonia, urged the authorities to announce clearly whether the NEET PG 2025 exam will be held on 15th or not. He added that last year, also, the decision to hold the exam in two shifts was implemented suddenly, and many candidates did not score well because of this.
"Now, when SC also gave time to NBEMS to respond whether they can hold the exam on 15th or not, we request the authorities to kindly announce clear date for exam. So that aspirants can prepare without dilemma about exam date," he said.
Calling the Supreme Court's decision historic, the National President of FAIMA, Dr Akshay Dongardive, opined that the Supreme Court's order is not just a win for this year’s candidates, but a victory for the principles of justice and equality in the entire medical education system.
He expressed gratitude to the Apex Court for upholding justice and fairness and added that "This decision ensures that every aspirant is given an equal opportunity and is evaluated on a level playing field, eliminating the risk of disparity in the difficulty levels of the question papers."
Dr. Dongardive also expressed gratitude to all the resident doctor associations, intern associations and doctor associations across India for their unwavering efforts in voicing this concern, standing strong, and working tirelessly for the rights and welfare of medical aspirants.
The Indian Medical Association Junior Doctors Network has welcomed the judgment and termed it to be a "thoughtful and timely decision" that reinforces the principles of fairness, transparency, and equal opportunity for all postgraduate medical aspirants across the country.
Commenting on the matter, the National Secretary of IMA JDN, Dr. Indranil Deshmukh, told Medical Dialogues, "Conducting the examination in multiple shifts could have led to challenges in maintaining uniformity and fairness in score normalization. The court’s directive rightly upholds the importance of a level playing field, thereby ensuring that merit remains the cornerstone of India’s postgraduate medical entrance system."
"We would also like to place on record our appreciation for the National Board of Examinations (NBE) and the National Medical Commission (NMC) for their steadfast commitment to upholding the integrity of medical examinations. Both institutions have consistently demonstrated their technical capacity and administrative competence in conducting large scale assessments with credibility and precision under the great leadership of Ministry of Health and Family welfares. We are confident in their ability to implement the Supreme Court’s directive in the best interests of the candidates," he said, while urging NBE to consider increasing the number of exam centres- particularly in smaller towns and underserved regions, to minimize travel-related stress and financial burden on candidates.
While welcoming the Supreme Court's ruling, Dr. Rohan Krishnan, a health and medical education activist and also the Chief Patron to the FAIMA Doctors Association, said, "From now on, this whole problem is solved. Because of the Supreme Court judgment, in future also they will not be able to conduct NEET PG in two shifts."
"There were a lot of complaints amongst the students that there is some kind of malfunctioning of the National Board of Examination, and some malafide intentions are there in conducting two shifts. Also, as a medical professional, I was not able to understand the normalisation pattern, and the FAIMA doctors' association has constantly written to the National Medical Commission, the Health Minister, and the National Board of Examinations to conduct the NEET PG examination in a single shift only. So it is a very big win for all of us. And once again, I thank the legal system of our country and we are also fighting another case regarding this, where we want transparency in the NEET PG paper, where we want students should be given the answer solutions, questions, and everything should be very transparent. That case is also to be heard on 7th July in the Supreme Court," he added.
A medical education activist from Maharashtra, Brijesh Sutaria, called it a "watershed moment". He told Medical Dialogues, "The Supreme Court has rightly recognized what lakhs of NEET PG aspirants have been consistently voicing two-shift exams are inherently unfair and lead to arbitrariness. If NBEMS could conduct NEET PG smoothly in a single shift till 2023, what changed? Infrastructure isn’t the problem; intent and planning are."
"Was NBEMS complacent while the matter was sub judice? Why wasn’t a backup network of centers prepared?" he questioned.
"This judgment is a reality check: medical education cannot run on opacity or unchecked authority. The Court’s message is loud and clear- do not play with students' futures. The onus is now on NBEMS and MoHFW to act swiftly, transparently, and fairly. NEET PG 2025 must be conducted in a single shift on time, with integrity, and without excuses," he said.
