NEET-UG counselling to begin in July's third week in four rounds: Centre

The NEET-UG counselling process for undergraduate medical seats is set to kick off in four rounds, commencing in the third week of July, as confirmed by the government. The announcement was made in an affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court, which is currently reviewing a series of petitions, some of which call for the cancellation of the NEET-UG exam due to an alleged paper leak.

The government has assured that any student discovered to have benefited from malpractice will have their candidature revoked at any point during the counselling phase or even thereafter.

The NEET-UG counselling is crucial for allocating seats to successful candidates based on their examination scores. The Medical Counselling Committee, established under the health ministry, oversees counselling for all-India quota seats, while state quota seats are managed by the respective state counselling committees.

During the counselling process, candidates are required to submit their preferences for medical colleges, with seat allocations being determined by their scores. The government clarified in its affidavit that candidates can change their seat selections in the first and second rounds of counselling based on their preferences.

According to the affidavit, the third round of counselling is anticipated to commence in the second week of September. It was highlighted that if a candidate's candidature is cancelled after the third round, any vacant seats can still be filled in subsequent rounds. However, candidates who have been allocated seats in earlier rounds will not be eligible to participate in subsequent rounds.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Supreme Court deferred the hearing on NEET matters to July 18. The hearing that was about to take place on July 11 was scheduled to address a series of petitions concerning the suspected paper leaks and irregularities in the National Eligibility Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2024

Approximately 1.20 lakh undergraduate medical seats are available in government and private medical colleges nationwide. Over 23 lakh students took the NEET-UG exam this year on May 5. The results were announced on June 4, paving the way for the upcoming counselling process.