The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance test (NEET) is a compulsory entrance exam to get into medical colleges in India or MBBS Abroad. This exam is also important for admissions into other medical programs like BHMS, BAMS, BUMS and also for the BSc nursing courses in armed forces medical hospitals.
It is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA). This exam is held in offline pen and paper mode and consist of multiple choice questions which consists of subjects like physics, chemistry and biology.
The ministry of education is analysing whether the NEET UG (India’s largest medical
exam) could be changed. A change might not take place and can be shifted from pen and
paper to a computer based (CBT) pattern.
The NEET 2024 Paper Leak Controversy
The biggest reason for doing this is the NEET 2024 paper leak, controversy raised over exam security.
Serious accusations were made in this controversy, such as the question paper being leaked prior to the test, candidates receiving disproportionately high grace marks that escalated their scores, and numerous procedural irregularities in the test’s administration and assessment particularly in Bihar’s Hazaribagh and Patna.
Join NEET News 2025 Actually before the test started, the students to whom the paper was already leaked were instructed to memorise the answers. As a result even those students who had worked really hard and scored well had to retake the exam.
Read Also: NEET UG Scams: Paper Leak, Marks Manipulation & NTA Credibility Crisis
Ministry of Education Will Decide After Thorough Discussions
The senior officials have declared that only after thorough interdepartmental consultation is finished a final decision will be made.
Sources claims that the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health have already had a lot of conversations about whether NEET UG 2026 should remain as a traditional pen and paper test or should switch to an online pattern.
Pros & Cons of NEET UG in Online Mode
Lets discuss the pros and cons of conduction NEET UG exam in online mode.
If we talk about the pros of conducting NEET online it can reduce paper leak, an online mode of test can prevent paper leaks and cheating which is actually a security concern in the offline mode of test. It also lead to faster processing as the answer will be automatically marked which creates quick result and saves time.
Online mode of test can also lead to less OMR errors. The potential for a digital device ,
which is a disadvantage for students especially from rural areas with insufficient
network access, technical problems like glitch , poor connection. It can lead to stress
and hinder performance. It can be a drawback of an online NEET exam .
Read Also: NEET UG 2026 Exam: What Changes Students Can Expect?
Need to Build Capacity Before Implementation
The debate on moving NEET 2026 from the Pen and Paper Mode to an online
computer based test pattern has began to be in the discussion of authorities because of
the serious controversies over the 2024 paper leak.
Conducting NEET online may reduce paper leaks, minimise OMR errors and a faster result process on the other hand, this also means technical glitches, poor network connection for students in rural areas. This can be a main source of stress for the authorities.
The transition to computer based test (CBT) mode has not been officially implemented
despite years of discussion
