By Gaurav Tyagi, Founder, Career Xpert
In a development that has caused shockwaves throughout the medical education system, the India Supreme Court has ordered the National Board of Examinations (NBE) not to hold NEET-PG 2025 in multiple shifts for being arbitrary and discriminatory in the differences in difficulty levels. The judgment reaffirms the necessity for a uniform testing environment so that all candidates are treated equally.
The bench, acting on several petitions moved by aggrieved aspirants and rights groups, noted that NEET-PG being held in two or more shifts automatically leads to differing difficulty levels despite applying normalisation methods.
No algorithm can completely equate the psychological and academic effect of differing paper difficulties, the court ruled, terming it a ‘violation of equal opportunity’.
The court has instructed the NBE to make necessary arrangements—technological or logistical—to provide for all the aspirants to give the exam simultaneously or receive like treatment under a shared paradigm.
Unusual and Trending Facts One might know
1. AI-Based Normalization Under Fire
Behind the scenes, NBE has reportedly been using a machine-learning-driven normalisation algorithm similar to international testing organisations such as GRE and GMAT. But legal professionals and teachers say it is not transparent and can be biased, particularly because raw data or the algorithm is not made publicly auditable.
2. 18,000 Objections Had Faced 2024’s Two-Shift NEET-PG
During the 2024 exam season, more than 18,000 candidates lodged formal complaints to the NBE regarding discrepancies in scores between shifts, as unfairness. Leaks in data indicated that the general gap in the average score between shift 1 and shift 2 was close to 12 percentile points, even after normalisation.
3. India Among Few Countries Still Conducting PG Medical Exams in Shifts
Interestingly enough, all the developed world countries, such as the US, UK, and Australia, do their medical PG entrance tests in a computer-adaptive or integrated format, eschewing the “multiple shift” model entirely. India’s dependence on multi-shift tests have more and more come to be regarded as obsolete and unequal in high-stakes tests.
4. Effect on Seat Allocation and Counseling
The disparity in exam toughness has traditionally plagued rank-based counselling, especially for the most coveted spots in AIIMS, PGI, and premier DNB institutes. A few percentiles can make the difference between radiology in Delhi vs. an unaided seat in a peripheral centre.
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5. NBE May Explore 24-Hour Global Exam Window Model
Sources within NBE hint at exploring a 24-hour global exam window—a format used by GMAT—where all candidates receive unique but standardised difficulty-level papers, monitored by AI proctoring and pattern analytics.
A Step Towards Justice in Medical Education
The Supreme Court’s intervention not only upholds the right to equality of opportunity in competitive tests but also marks a significant policy change for national-level test authorities. As India is further streamlining its exam systems according to international best practices, this judgement can well herald a new era in medical entrance testing—one that is just, transparent, and accountable.
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