Mumbai: The third round of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) postgraduate (PG) 2024 counselling in Maharashtra has brought to light the widespread inefficiencies in this year’s process. Scheduled to begin on January 7, the counselling round remains on hold in the state as the seat matrix is yet to be released.
As per a recent development, students in the state have been allowed to resign their round 2 seats until January 15 at 5:30 p.m. by paying a penalty, indicating that the seat matrix for the third round will only be issued after this deadline.
This delay is not unique to Maharashtra but is reflective of the larger disarray across the country. State counselling processes in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana have also been sluggish, with only two rounds completed in nearly four months.
These prolonged delays are creating a domino effect, with the risk of NEET PG 2024 counselling overlapping with the 2025 examinations, which is causing undue stress for aspirants, who are already navigating a highly competitive and demanding process.
Brijesh Sutaria, a Mumbai-based medical education activist, criticised the situation, describing the process as “chaotic and disappointing.” He noted, “Delays in exams, counselling timelines, and indecision regarding cutoff reductions have disrupted the entire admission cycle. The late announcement of reduced cutoffs by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) after two rounds of All India counselling has only added to the confusion.”
Sutaria further pointed out that the lack of a streamlined approach has caused unnecessary stress for aspirants. “A more organised and timely process is urgently needed to ensure fairness and efficiency,” he added.
The issues are not limited to the counselling process alone, but they started as soon as the NEET PG schedule for 2024 was announced. Digressing from the usual one-phase exam, NEET PG 2024 examinations were conducted in two phases.
Then, when the results were announced, it only carried the All India Rank and not individual scores. Even the states were not provided with the individual scores, leaving them without critical data for a fair and efficient admission process.
In another significant change, the National Board of Medical Sciences (NBMS) itself prepared the merit list centrally, instead of the common practice of states preparing their own lists in the previous years.
With significant changes introduced in 2024 selection process, the delays in counselling process has sparked further frustration and confusion among candidates and education activists alike, who have called for transparency in selection process and have urged the NBMC to show urgency in finishing the 2024 process so that it does not overlap with NEET PG 2025.
“Before Covid-19, NEET PG exams used to be conducted on the first Sunday of January. But that process has not yet been reinstated, that’s why it has not already overlapped,” said a candidate, wondering when the process will return to its original track.
“Hopefully, the 2025 process is smoother than 2024 and creates less confusion among the candidates. And then probably the NBMS can work on bringing the pre-covid timeline back in 2026,” she added.
