NEET-UG centre-wise results: Centres mired in controversies deliver subpar performance

The state and centre-wise NEET-UG test result data announced by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday showed that the centres previously flagged for anomalies did not display unusual performance patterns.

The voluminous result data of over 32 lakh candidates from 4,750 centres in 571 cities was released by the agency following the direction of the Supreme Court.

The NEET-UG 2024 data revealed that the candidates at “dubious centres” like Oasis School in Hazaribag (Jharkhand), Hardayal Public School in Bahadurgarh (Haryana), and Jay Jalaram International School in Godhra (Gujarat) performed below par vis-a-vis not just the centres in coaching hubs but also thousands of others where no irregularities were reported.

This disclosure assumes great significance in light of the NTA's assertion that the leak was confined to Hazaribag, and there is no need to annul the test as those involved have already been identified and disqualified.

Below par performance

In Oasis School, which is implicated in the alleged leak, there were 701 candidates, none of whom scored 700 or higher, as per a report in The Times of India. “Seven candidates scored between 650 and 699, and an additional 12 candidates scored between 600 and 649. Interestingly, fewer than 1% of candidates at Oasis School achieved scores of 650 or above,” said the report.

On the other hand, more than 2% of candidates scored 650 or higher, with one candidate achieving a score above 700, at St Xavier's School in the same city. The examination centre at St Xavier's in Hazaribag has not been subjected to scrutiny.

Just like those who appeared at Oasis School, candidates who took exams at the centre in Jay Jalaram School in Godhra, where the authorities allegedly resorted to corrupt practices to help a few crack the exams, have not done well. The school in Godhra had one of the lowest percentages of candidates scoring 600 or higher, with none of the 1,836 students achieving scores above 700, and only 0.4% (7 students) scoring 650 or above.

Similarly, at Master Adityendra Government Senior Secondary School in Rajasthan’s Bharatpur, where a case of impersonation was reported, 0.71% of candidates finished in the top 1%, below Bharatpur’s overall rate of 1.4%.

This also holds true for Hardayal Public School in Haryana, which was mired in a controversy after candidates were awarded grace marks due to inadequate time to complete the exam. Later, the grace marks were rescinded by the NTA, leading to a retest. At Hardayal Public School, out of 494 candidates, none scored above 700, and only two managed to achieve scores of 650 or higher in the retest. A total of 15 candidates scored 600 or above at this centre.

Supreme Court directive

Earlier, the Supreme Court had on Thursday ordered the NTA to upload on its website by Saturday noon the centre-wise results. This move was aimed at pinpointing candidates who gained from the NEET-UG question paper leak in Bihar and assess the extent of the leakage.

The apex court’s scrutiny of the NEET-UG’s validity is currently limited to two separate instances of paper leaks in Patna and Hazaribagh.

A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud has emphasised that its decision on potentially scrapping the exam and ordering a retest will depend on whether the breaches were localised or systemic.