Supreme Court to Hear NEET-PG 2024 Postponement Petition

The Supreme Court will hear a petition tomorrow seeking to postpone the NEET-PG 2024 exam due to issues with the allocation of “highly inconvenient” exam centers and concerns about the normalization of marks. Advocate Anas Tanwir, representing the petitioners, presented the plea before Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, who assured that the matter would be listed for hearing.

The petitioners are requesting the rescheduling of the NEET-PG 2024 exam, which is set for August 11. They argue that many candidates have been assigned to cities that are difficult to reach, and they seek clarity on the normalization process for the four sets of question papers to prevent any arbitrariness.

The petitioners pointed out that the test city allocations were made on July 31, with specific centers to be announced on August 8. Although they understand that these measures aim to prevent malpractice, the short notice makes travel arrangements challenging for students. Over 200,000 students are expected to take the exam, which will be held in 185 cities, leading to issues with train ticket availability and increased airfares.

The petition also highlights that the exam will be conducted in two batches, causing concerns about the fairness of the normalization process since one batch might face a more difficult question paper than the other. The petitioners request that the normalization formula be disclosed before the exam to ensure transparency.

Anas Tanwir, an Advocate on Record, filed the petition, and various students, including Vishal Soren, have urged the court to hold the exam in a single batch for fairness. The petitioners are also calling for more equitable and transparent allocation of test centers to nearby locations.