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India Neet retest: 2.3 million students sit exam amid tight security
Enhanced security measures were adopted, including biometric authentication and strict frisking to ensure a transparent process; nearly 140,000 CCTV cameras were installed
- PUBLISHED: Sun 21 Jun 2026, 4:17 PM
About 2.3 million aspiring medical students sat for the re-examination of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Neet–UG) at 5,440 centres in 551 Indian cities and 14 abroad on Sunday.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) said over 95,000 examination rooms had been equipped with CCTV surveillance to monitor the massive exercise. The retest is being held following the cancellation of the previous exam on May 3 following allegations of a question paper leak.
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Enhanced security measures were adopted, including biometric authentication and strict frisking to ensure a transparent process. Nearly 140,000 CCTV cameras were installed at all the examination centres and the feeds were being virtually monitored at the central and state levels. Over 50,000 jammers had also been deployed to prevent electronic malpractice. About 50,000 biometric staff and 40,000 frisking personnel were present at the examination centres.
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A majority of the students (about 1.8 million) took the exams in English, 350,000 opted for Hindi and the rest in 11 other Indian languages.
Uttar Pradesh saw 360,000 students appearing for the exams. It was followed by Maharashtra (220,000), and Rajasthan, Bihar, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, with each reporting over 100,000 students. Southern states saw the maximum number of Neet students: Karnataka (150,000), Tamil Nadu (140,000), Kerala (110,000) and Telangana (73,000).
Free travel
Several states including Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Odisha and Bihar provided free travel on state-operated buses for students heading for Neet UG exams.
In Delhi, chief minister Rekha Gupta said no student or family member would face difficulties in transportation or at examination centres as free travel on Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses had been arranged. Special waiting arrangements had also been made for parents of the students.
“While candidates remain inside the examination halls, the discomfort faced by parents waiting outside for several hours often goes unnoticed,” said Gupta. “They will now have a space to sit and have clean drinking water, oral rehydration solution (ORS), tea and first-aid support. Comfortable waiting arrangements will be available for them outside the examination centres.”
Medical team on standby
In Kolkata, Shrishti Dubey, a student who sustained severe injuries following an accident last week, sat in a separate examination room along with medical support and did her exam. An ambulance along with a medical team were on standby outside. Shreeram Dubey, her father got a call from Dharmendra Pradhan, the Indian education minister. According to Dubey, nine of Shrishti’s ribs were broken and she sustained severe lung injuries as well following an accident on June 14.
At some centres in the country, security personnel made the students remove religious attire including sacred threads, ‘rudraksha’ beads, and burkas while entering the halls. However, after parents raised objections, most of the students were allowed entry without removing them.
Incidentally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who landed at Delhi airport on Sunday around 1pm, delayed his departure to his residence by 45 minutes to ensure that traffic was not disrupted and ensuring students heading for their exam centres reached on time.
Telegram banned
The Indian government had also banned Telegram, the messaging app from June 16 to 22. The Delhi high court had upheld the ban. The government claimed it had emerged as a key platform for organised cheating networks who were involved in the leakage and circulation of examination-related data.
IIT Bombay had welcomed the government ban on Telegram “to prevent underground cheating syndicates from targeting Neet-UG medical candidates with fake "leaked" examination papers and other fraudulent schemes.”
It mentioned a UN Office on Drugs and Crime report last year, which highlighted “Telegram’s growing use in activities such as online fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, and the sale of illicit services. India is among the countries affected by these transnational networks.
The report has contributed to a wider global discussion on the responsibility of digital platforms to proactively address criminal misuse and strengthen safeguards against organised crime.”
