The NEET-UG 2024 crisis has taken a significant turn with the Supreme Court’s recent directive regarding a disputed question in the examination. The revised results were released on 26 July 2024. Data indicates that a total of 80,117 students scored above 600 out of the total 23.3 lakh students. That is, 3.5% of them scored above 600. The state-wise distribution of these students reveals that only four states- Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Maharashtra account for almost half of the it.
The NEET-UG 2024 crisis has taken a significant turn with the Supreme Court’s recent directive regarding a disputed question in the examination. The revised results were released on 26 July.
Relying on the expert committee report by IIT Madras on NEET-UG 2024 results and the investigative agencies, the Supreme Court ruled that the alleged paper leak was not “systemic” or widespread enough to compromise the overall integrity of the exam. This ruling provided some reassurance amidst growing concerns over the examination’s validity. The Court emphasized that conducting a fresh NEET-UG for the current year would have serious consequences for over two million students who sat for the exam, highlighting the impracticality and disruption such a measure would cause.
In our previous story, we explored the evolution of NEET and examined statistics related to registrations and qualifications. In this follow-up, we delve into trends from the state, city, and centre-wise results published by the NTA, on the directions of the Supreme Court. The data released by the NTA has centre-wise anonymised marks of each of the 23 lakh odd students who took NEET(UG) 2024. This data offers a more granular look at the performance and participation across different regions.
Note: It has to be noted that the marks released by the NTA are centre-wise and hence the analysis of state-wise marks/averages is based on the state where the centre is located and not necessarily the domicile state of the student.
3.5% students scored above 600 marks, with four states accounting for half of them.
The NEET UG exam is held in pen-and-paper format for admissions to MBBS and BDS programs across India. Annually, hundreds of thousands of students vie for a limited number of seats in medical and dental colleges nationwide. According to the NEET 2024 exam pattern, the test consists of 200 questions, with students required to attempt only 180. Each question is worth 4 marks, making the total possible maximum score 720. For each correct answer, 4 marks will be awarded, while each incorrect answer will result in a deduction of 1 mark.
It is assumed that, based on previous years’ scores, any score above 600 is a good score, and could probably fetch a seat in a government college. The data on the NEET 2024 results show that approximately 80,117 students scored above 600 out of the total 23.3 lakh students. That is, 3.5% of them scored above 600. The state-wise distribution of these students reveals that only four states- Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Maharashtra account for almost half of it. Rajasthan tops the chart with nearly 19% of their share in total, followed by UP at 11.4%, Maharashtra at 9.3% and Kerala at 8.2%. As mentioned previously, these shares represent the students who took the exam in these respective states.
8 states & UTs had more share of students with above 600 marks than the national average
To assess how states performed relative to the national average, we examined the proportion of students scoring above 600 out of the total number of exam takers from each state. Nationally, 3.5% of students—equivalent to 80,117 out of 2.3 lakh students—scored above 600 marks. However, certain states exceeded this average significantly.
For instance, in Rajasthan, 8% of NEET candidates scored above 600 marks, which translates to 1 in every 12 students. In Haryana, 6.3% of students achieved scores above 600. Kerala followed with 4.8%, Punjab with 4%, and Andhra Pradesh and Odisha each with 3.8%. Conversely, some states fell below the national average. In Telangana, only 1.4% of students scored above 600 marks.
The disparities in NEET performance among states could be attributed to several factors. One key factor is the concentration of educational institutions and coaching centres in certain states, and hence students choose a centre in these states.
Sikar from Rajasthan has 16% students who got above 600 marks out of total
To understand the distribution of students scoring above 600 marks at the city level, a detailed mapping was conducted. The data reveals that certain cities have a disproportionately high share of students achieving scores above 600. For instance, in Sikar, Rajasthan, one out of every six students scored above 600, while in Kota, Rajasthan, one in every ten students achieved this score.
Analysing the cities with the highest proportion of high scorers, it is evident that many of them are located in Rajasthan or Haryana, regions known as traditional coaching hubs. This trend highlights the significant impact of educational institutions and coaching centres in these areas. Additionally, it may also suggest a possible connection between these educational hubs and the examination centres, potentially influencing the high-performance rates observed.
Almost half of the centres in India scored higher than their respective state average marks
NEET 2024 was conducted across 4,750 centres throughout India. To identify if any centres in particular states had disproportionately higher scores, we analysed the average scores of the centres relative to their respective state averages. This analysis revealed that out of the total 4,750 centres, approximately 2,204 centres (46%) had average scores exceeding the state averages.
Examining the distribution of these 2,204 centres, it was found that nearly 40% are concentrated in four states: Maharashtra (13.8%), Uttar Pradesh (13.7%), Rajasthan (7.3%), and Kerala (6.5%). This significant concentration suggests regional variations in performance, potentially influenced by factors such as the quality of educational institutions, availability of coaching centres, and possibly the examination environment at these centres.
Concentration of Top Scorers in Few Regions in India Raises Concerns
These observations indicate that a few states, and specific cities within those states, exhibit a higher proportion of high-scoring students compared to the rest of the country. This trend could be attributed to the presence of coaching facilities and the concentration of most test takers in these areas. Additionally, as mentioned previously, the fact that students from other states choose to take the exam in these high-performing states, often travelling from far away, suggests there might be other underlying factors influencing these preferences.
Regardless of the reasons, this disproportionate concentration of high-scoring students warrants a deeper analysis.
