As the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) gears up to conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test - Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2025 on June 15, several aspirants and activists have raised fresh concerns regarding the two-shift exam pattern, alleged irregularities in the normalisation process, and lack of transparency in result declaration.
Now, Health Activist Dr Dhruv Chauhan took to social media on Thursday, April 10, to criticise the decision to hold the postgraduate medical entrance examination in two shifts this year, despite the absence of the logistical challenges that were cited as reasons for the same in 2024.
The post made on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) questioned why NBEMS is repeating the two-shift format even when, unlike last year, there have been no known issues around centre allocation or security arrangements.
The activist pointed out that during NEET-PG 2024, the authorities had justified the two-shift pattern, citing insufficient time for logistics and coordination following multiple postponements.
However, with this year’s exam schedule being more streamlined, the same reasoning does not hold ground, he argued.
“This year neither there was such issue and yet exam is being conducted in two shift despite knowing about the alleged irregularities and lack of transparency in Normalisation and marks calculation,” the tweet added.
The post further highlighted how the disparity in difficulty levels between the two shifts in 2024 had a tangible impact on candidates’ performance and morale.
Many aspirants who appeared in the second shift last year found it significantly tougher, which potentially skewed results despite the application of normalisation.
“Losing confidence during that period affects the score and stats of the aspirants relative to other shift which is possible this time as well,” the tweet read.
This sentiment has been echoed by many aspirants who continue to demand a single-shift exam to ensure a level playing field.
Concerns over transparency
Beyond the exam pattern, the activist also raised longstanding concerns over the lack of transparency in NEET-PG’s evaluation process. Unlike other major competitive exams, NEET-PG does not provide aspirants access to their answer keys, response sheets, or any mechanism to challenge their results.
“What sort of democracy are we living in when the aspirants are not even permitted to go through their own answer keys post exam results nor they are responded despite thousands of emails / complaints in the regulatory bodies of NMC and NBE,” the activist wrote.
