New Delhi, 20 Sept

The Supreme Court on Friday questioned the last-minute changes to the NEET-PG, 2024, pattern by the National Board of Education, saying it was "very unusual" and students could have a "meltdown".

A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud took note of the submissions of senior advocate Vibha Datta Makhija and lawyer Tanvi Dubey, appearing for the students, and sought responses from the National Board of Education (NBE) and the Centre within a week on the pleas while listing them for hearing on 27 September.

At the outset, the senior advocate said the issue pertained to last-minute changes in the examination pattern, normalisation of marks, disclosure of answer keys, and the question papers of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Post-Graduation (NEET-PG), held on August 11.

She said there were neither any rules nor clarity and the exam was split into two parts three days before the test. "There needs to be a standardised approach," she said and added there were no regulations to ascertain as to how the exams were to be conducted. "Everything was dependent on a single information bulletin which can be modified at the whims and fancies of the authorities."

The counsel for the NBE contested the submissions and said nothing new and unusual were done. "It is very unusual… Three days before the examinations (exam pattern was changed) ...students will have a meltdown," Chief Justice Chandrachud said and listed the pleas on September 27, keeping in mind the upcoming counselling for admissions in postgraduate courses.

The plea, filed by Ishika Jain and others, was last heard on 13 September. It seeks the disclosure of answer keys, question papers of NEET-PG, 2024, and standardisation of marks as the test was split into two parts for ensuring transparency in the selection process.

NEET-PG is conducted for admissions in courses after MBBS and BDS. The results, which were announced by the NBE on 23 August, have led to concerns among students over unexpectedly low rankings.

After comparing the scores with unofficial answer keys, many students raised suspicion about discrepancies in the ranking process and urged the NBE to release official answer keys and set up a grievance portal to address the issues.

Makhija had earlier said the NBE did not release either the question papers or the answer keys and, without knowing the correct answers, the candidates would not be able to assess their performances in a transparent way.