New Delhi | Several sections of the medical community have termed as "unprecedented and illogical" the NBEMS's decision to drastically reduce the cut-off percentile for candidates across all categories for NEET-PG 2025-26 and said the move may compromise the quality of healthcare delivery as serious concerns are raised about the quality of future specialists.
With over 18,000 postgraduate medical seats across the country remaining vacant, the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) on Tuesday revised the qualifying percentiles for NEET-PG 2025 admissions, reducing it to zero from 40 percentile for reserved categories -- which will make even those scoring as low as minus 40 out of 800 to take part in the third round of counselling for PG medical seats.
According to the notice published by NBEMS, the NEET PG cutoff for the general category has been reduced to seven percentile from 50.
The decision follows the completion of round two counselling.
Bodies such as doctors' group Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) and Federation of Doctors Association (FORDA) have sought the notification to be withdrawn.
In a letter to Union Health Minister J P Nadda, FAIMA president Dr Rohan Krishnan said reducing the percentile to zero sets a dangerous precedent for the future of India's medical education system.
Emphasising that the NEET-PG is a prestigious, highly competitive national-level examination that serves as the backbone of postgraduate medical education in India, the FAIMA said in its letter said that such an "unprecedented and illogical" reduction in the cut-off severely undermines the sanctity, credibility, and purpose of this examination.
Allowing candidates with negative marks to qualify for postgraduate medical training cannot be justified under any academic or ethical standards, it said.
"This decision raises serious concerns about the quality of future specialists and poses a direct threat to patient safety and public health, particularly affecting the poor and vulnerable sections of society who depend on government and teaching hospitals," the FAIMA said.
Furthermore, such a drastic reduction creates an impression that conducting a national competitive examination like NEET-PG may soon become redundant, as admissions could be granted irrespective of merit, rank, or eligibility, it pointed out.
"Lowering educational standards merely to fill vacant seats in certain private medical colleges is unacceptable and sets a harmful precedent for the future of India's medical education system," the body said as it urged the government to immediately withdraw this notification and restore a reasonable, merit-based cut-off in the larger interest of patients, medical education, and public trust.
Failing timely corrective action, FAIMA will be compelled to initiate nationwide protests in consultation with resident doctors and medical associations across the country, the doctors' body said.
Echoing similar concerns, FORDA also has written to Nadda wherein it expressed disappointment regarding the National Board of Examinations (NBE)'s recent decision stating "this unprecedented move undermines the sanctity of a merit-based selection process, devalues the rigorous preparation of lakhs of aspiring doctors, and poses a grave threat to the credibility of the medical profession in the eyes of the common public".
Aspirants sacrificed years to meet past high cutoffs, yet NBE's arbitrary reduction without justification or consultation compromises merit, demoralises toppers, and risks subpar candidates affecting patient care, the FORDA said in its letter.
The FORDA also highlighted that this slash favours private medical colleges by filling seats with lower-scoring candidates at exorbitant fees, prioritising institutional profits over student welfare.
"With faith already strained by past controversies, lowered cutoffs undermine perceptions of doctors as highly skilled experts. Patients deserve merit-based specialists, not diluted standards," it stated.
The FORDA sought Nadda's immediate intervention to revert the cutoff decision and restore the original qualifying criteria based on empirical data and expert review. It also called for setting up a high-level committee comprising NMC, NBE, and resident doctor representatives to review and standardise cutoff policies transparently and engaging stakeholders in future policy changes to prevent such unilateral actions.
Official sources said the revision aims to ensure optimal utilisation of available seats, which are vital for expanding India's pool of trained medical specialists.
Leaving such seats vacant undermines efforts to improve healthcare delivery and results in the loss of valuable educational resources, the sources said.
NEET-PG serves as a ranking mechanism to facilitate transparent, merit-based allocation of seats through centralised counselling.
The previous percentile thresholds had restricted the pool of eligible candidates despite the availability of seats.
Listing the key highlights, official sources said the admissions remain strictly merit-based, determined by NEET-PG rank and candidate preferences.
Allotments will be made only through authorised counselling mechanisms and no direct or discretionary admissions are permitted. Inter-se merit and choice-based allocation will continue to guide seat distribution, the sources said.
The sources said there will be no dilution of academic standards and that the revised percentile merely expands eligibility among already-qualified MBBS doctors.
Transparency and fairness remain central to the process, it had added.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had formally requested a revision of the qualifying cut-off on January 12, citing the need to prevent seat wastage and strengthen healthcare services.
