Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan congratulated all aspirants, their parents, and all those involved in the successful conduct of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) re-exam. In an exclusive interview with NDTV, Pradhan said that the National Testing Agency organised the NEET re-exam in just 38 days, which generally takes around six months of preparation.
The NTA conducted the NEET UG 2026 retest on June 21 for more than 20 lakh candidates across 5,440 centres in India and 14 centres abroad.
With the announcement of the new dates to the conduct of the exam, the NTA generally takes six months to prepare question papers, organise the exam, and conduct them, according to Pradhan. The challenge this time was to plan the same in just 38 days, the education minister stated.
Pradhan also said that foolproof examinations were conducted this year. Students have done good, they are going to score well, he added. "I wish the candidates all the very best and I wish the students secure seats in top medical institutes of India," the minister said.
The education minister also expressed gratitude to state governments, officials involved, armed forces, and government ministries for their support. Coordinated efforts from all stakeholders ensured the foolproof exam, he said.
Upon being asked about the learnings from the previous NEET paper leak issue, Pradhan said that the focus was to undo the issues and overcome the challenges. From Day, the officials were involved in overcoming the challenges, to ensure zero leakage.
The first challenge was to prepare the question paper in a fair manner. Teachers from top institutions were gathered for the same. The question papers were prepared under the surveillance of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), the minister added. Teachers were also kept in isolation to maintain the secrecy of the questions, he said.
Pradhan stated there was multi-layer monitoring, and the Indian Air Force and state governments were roped in for executing the foolproof plan.
