The Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, announced on Friday (15th May) that OMR sheets will be done away with in the NEET examination from the next academic year. The high-stakes medical entrance exam will be conducted in the Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode. The decision comes after the NEET-UG exam conducted earlier this month was cancelled following a paper leak.
“One important point I wanted to mention is that from next year, the root issue will be addressed. The NEET examination will be conducted as a computer-based test instead of (on) OMR sheets,” Union Education Minister said, addressing the media. He added that the fresh NEET-UG examination will be held on 21st June and the admit cards for the exam will be issued on 14th June.
“Today, we are announcing a new date. The fresh examination will be held a little over a month from now. Our approach will remain the same: zero tolerance toward malpractice. This is a long battle against exam mafias and anti-social elements,” he stated.
Delhi: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan says, "…Our responsibility is to ensure that the NTA remains error-free. We are committed to a zero-error approach, and the Indian system will make it happen. That's why we're approaching this exam with an open mind. As I… pic.twitter.com/rRRyEMViuS
— IANS (@ians_india) May 15, 2026
The Minister said that students appearing for the re-examination will be given one week’s time to choose the examination centre, keeping in mind their convenience. The students will not be charged any fee for the re-examination. In addition to that, the students will be given 15 minutes of extended time during the re-examination to fill in their details in the examination sheets.
Pradhan said that the government has adopted a zero-tolerance policy towards any malpractices related to the examination. He assured that no disruption would be allowed to take place during the re-examination. “We have zero tolerance towards malpractices, and this is a long fight against the examination mafia… Various social media handles are trying to spread misinformation, the system is being challenged, and in view of this, the investigation has been handed over to the CBI, who have initiated immediate action. It will go to the depths of the breach…” Pradhan asserted.
