NEET UG 2025: Is top rank in India's one of toughest exam possible without coaching? AIR 3 rank holder gets real on hustle
Maharashtra's Krishang Joshi has secured All India Rank (AIR) 3 in
NEET UG 2025
with an impressive 99.9998189 percentile. Thrilled with the result, Krishang said he's confident the score will help him secure an MBBS seat at
AIIMS Delhi
.
Sharing his success strategy, Krishang said that he mainly followed the teacher's guidance and study materials provided by his coaching institute. "The study materials and lesson tips provided by my coaching institute is enough to do well in NEET. Before the NEET exam, I attempted mock tests daily which helped me to secure a top rank in NEET," he told
ET Now Digital
. Apart from the coaching institute's study materials, he followed the NCERT books thoroughly.
Are coaching classes important?
Meanwhile on a question whether he could crack NEET without coaching institute's support, the topper said, "cracking and get a good rank in NEET is two different things. Any brilliant mind can crack JEE, NEET, but to get a good rank you need coaching institute and their mentor's guidance as it is not possible for a 16 or 17-year-old to know the tactics to get success in competitive exams." Krishang also appeared for JEE Mains where he secured around 4,400 rank, his marks in CBSE was 94.8 per cent.
NEET-UG toppers
Rajasthan's Mahesh Kumar has topped the medical entrance exam NEET-UG, while Utkarsh Awadhiya from Madhya Pradhesh has bagged the second rank, the National Testing Agency (NTA) announced on Saturday.
More than 12.36 lakh candidates out of 22.09 lakh test takers qualified the exam. The number is down from last year's 13.15 lakh qualifying candidates. However, the number of test takers was also higher last year at over 23.33 lakh.
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Among the qualifying candidates this year, over 7.2 lakh are females while over 5.14 lakh are males.
While 529 qualifying candidates are foreign nationals, 405 are NRIs and 606 are OCI card holders.
Maharashtra's Krishang Joshi and Delhi's Mrinal Kishore Jha bagged the third and fourth ranks, respectively.
Among females, Delhi's Avika Aggarwal emerged topper, bagging the fifth rank nationally.
The maximum qualifying candidates are from Uttar Pradesh (over 1.70 lakh), followed by Maharashtra (over 1.25 lakh) and Rajasthan (over 1.19 lakh).
A total of 73 candidates have scored marks in the range of 651 to 686 out of 720 while 1,259 candidates have scored between 601 to 650.
"The NTA conducts the exam and declares result based on the eligibility criteria provided by the National Medical Council (NMC). The admitting authorities will now draw a merit list based on all India rank for the MBBS and BDS seats available in their jurisdiction," said Col B Vijay Kumar, Director (Exams), NTA.
The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) is the largest entrance exam in the country in terms of the number of candidates appearing for the test.
The NTA conducts the NEET every year for admission into medical colleges. A total of 1,08,000 seats are available for the MBSS course -- approximately 56,000 in government hospitals, and about 52,000 in private colleges.
Admissions to undergraduate courses in dentistry, Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha also utilise NEET results for admission.
NTA conducted NEET at 5,468 centres located at 552 cities in India and 14 cities in other countries on May 4. The cities outside India were Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bangkok, Colombo, Doha, Kathmandu, Kuwait, Lagos, Kaula Lumpur, Manama, Muscat, Riyadh, Sharjah and Singapore.
The exam was conducted in 13 languages -- Assamese, Bengali, English, Urdu, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malyalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Odia.
Over 18 lakh candidates had opted to appear for the exam in English while over 2.28 lakh candidates appeared in Hindi.
A total of 73 candidates have scored marks in the range of 651 to 686 out of 720 while 1,259 candidates have scored between 601 to 650.
The NTA had earlier this year announced that the crucial exam will continue to be conducted in pen and paper mode. The decision came after detailed deliberations between education and health ministries on whether to conduct the NEET-UG in pen and paper mode or online mode.
In the line of fire over alleged irregularities in NEET and PhD entrance NET, the Centre had in July last year set up a panel to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations by NTA.
According to the high-level panel headed by former ISRO Chief R Radhakrishnan, multi-stage testing for NEET-UG could be a viable possibility that needs to be followed up.
While NEET was last year plagued by several allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks, and litigation, UGC-NET was cancelled as the ministry received inputs that the integrity of the exam had been compromised. Both matters are being probed by the CBI.
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Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Rajasthan's Mahesh Kumar tops NEET-UG, MP's Utkarsh Awadhiya bags second rank
New Delhi: Rajasthan's Mahesh Kumar has topped the medical entrance exam NEET-UG, while Utkarsh Awadhiya from Madhya Pradhesh has bagged the second rank, the National Testing Agency (NTA) announced on Saturday. More than 12.36 lakh candidates out of 22.09 lakh test takers qualified the exam. The number is down from last year's 13.15 lakh qualifying candidates. However, the number of test takers was also higher last year at over 23.33 lakh. Among the qualifying candidates this year, over 7.2 lakh are females and over 5.14 lakh males. While 529 qualifying candidates are foreign nationals, 405 are NRIs and 606 are OCI card holders. Not a single candidate scored a perfect 720 in NEET-UG this year, a stark departure from last year when 17 students had achieved the maximum possible marks. Maharashtra's Krishang Joshi and Mrinal Kishore Jha from Delhi bagged the third and fourth ranks, respectively. Among females, Delhi's Avika Aggarwal emerged topper, bagging the fifth rank nationally. The maximum qualifying candidates are from Uttar Pradesh (over 1.70 lakh), followed by Maharashtra (over 1.25 lakh) and Rajasthan (over 1.19 lakh). States like Karnataka, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala also recorded over 70,000 qualifiers each, while more than 40,000 students who qualified were from Delhi. A total of 73 candidates have scored marks in the range of 651 to 686 out of 720 while 1,259 candidates have scored between 601 to 650. The majority of candidates fell in the 301-550 mark range with more than 1.26 lakh scoring between 301 and 350 and over 3 lakh between 144 and 200 -- the minimum qualifying range. Mahesh Kumar who was enrolled in a coaching centre in Rajasthan's Sikar said he used to score perfect marks in mock tests ahead of the exams. "But after appearing for the exam, I knew I won't score full marks but I did not expect first rank," he said. Avika Aggarwal's parents, who are doctors, said they prepared her well. "They warned me about how demanding this path is, but I still chose it for myself. I knew what I was walking into and I worked hard to earn it," Avika said. At 17, Delhi has the most candidates in the top 100, followed by 14 from Rajasthan, 11 from Maharashtra, nine each from Gujarat and Punjab and seven from Karnataka (7). Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and others also had strong representation in the top 100. All top 10 candidates belong to the general category. In other categories, the highest-ranked Other Backward Class-Non Creamy Layer (OBC-NCL) candidate, Tanay from Rajasthan, secured 13th position while Haryana's Kavish led the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category with 35th rank. Among Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates, Ayush Gautam from Uttar Pradesh topped with a 53rd rank, while Rajasthan's Nishant Kumar Meena topped in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) category by securing the 197th position. Notably, seven of the top 10 ST rankers are from Rajasthan. The qualifying cut-off range for the general and EWS categories dropped from 720-162 last year to 686-144 this year. For OBC, SC, and ST candidates, the cut-off fell from 161-127 to 143-113. A total of 5,64,611 OBC, 3,38,728 General, 1,68,873 SC, and 67,234 ST candidates have qualified. "The NTA conducts the exam and declares result based on the eligibility criteria provided by the National Medical Council (NMC). The admitting authorities will now draw a merit list based on all India rank for the MBBS and BDS seats available in their jurisdiction," said Col B Vijay Kumar, Director (Exams), NTA. The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) is the largest entrance exam in the country in terms of the number of candidates appearing for the test. The NTA conducts the NEET every year for admission into medical colleges. A total of 1,08,000 seats are available for the MBSS course -- approximately 56,000 in government hospitals, and about 52,000 in private colleges. Admissions to undergraduate courses in dentistry, Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha also utilise NEET results for admission. NTA conducted NEET at 5,468 centres located at 552 cities in India and 14 cities in other countries on May 4. The cities outside India were Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bangkok, Colombo, Doha, Kathmandu, Kuwait, Lagos, Kaula Lumpur, Manama, Muscat, Riyadh, Sharjah and Singapore. The exam was conducted in 13 languages -- Assamese, Bengali, English, Urdu, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malyalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Odia. Over 18 lakh candidates had opted to appear for the exam in English while over 2.28 lakh candidates appeared in Hindi. The NTA had earlier this year announced that the crucial exam will continue to be conducted in pen and paper mode. The decision came after detailed deliberations between education and health ministries on whether to conduct the NEET-UG in pen and paper mode or online mode. States like Karnataka, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala also recorded over 70,000 qualifiers each, while Delhi saw over 40,000 students qualify In the line of fire over alleged irregularities in NEET and PhD entrance NET, the Centre had in July last year set up a panel to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations by NTA. According to the high-level panel headed by former ISRO Chief R Radhakrishnan, multi-stage testing for NEET-UG could be a viable possibility that needs to be followed up. While NEET was last year plagued by several allegations of irregularities, including paper leaks, and litigation, UGC-NET was cancelled as the ministry received inputs that the integrity of the exam had been compromised. Both matters are being probed by the CBI. PTI>
The Print
3 hours ago
- The Print
Meet NEET UG 2025 toppers: Mahesh, Krishang & Avika on their ranks, dreams & road to AIIMS
'I still can't believe I secured rank three. The exam was hard (and) I expected to get a rank of nine or ten but never dreamt of three. It is not always the hard work; luck also plays an important factor,' Krishang told ThePrint over the phone. While Krishang is originally from Uttarakhand and appeared for the exam in Maharashtra's Pune, Avika is a resident of Faridabad in Haryana. New Delhi: Krishang Joshi and Avika Aggarwal, the All-India Rank (AIR) 3 and 5 in the NEET UG 2025 examination, are still in disbelief about their achievement in the entrance test held for admission in undergraduate medical programmes. Krishang, the son of a former merchant navy officer, went for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) preparation at Aakash Institute, when his father was posted in Goa. The AIR-3 rank holder started preparing for the NEET since he was in 10th standard and wanted to be enrolled at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. 'I have achieved my goal. In medical sciences, I want to pursue (a career in) research and surgical field,' he said. Similarly, Avika recalled how the results were overwhelming when it was announced Saturday. 'I was eagerly waiting for the results—10th June, 11th June, 12th June and so on, finally when I saw rank 5…I started crying and so did my parents,' the 17-year-old told ThePrint. 'I cannot believe I am the female topper of NEET UG.' 'Both my parents are doctors, so they helped me in preparing for the NEET exam as they understand it better because they are also involved in coaching for NEET PG,' she said. Apart from her doctor partners, she credited her success to her physics teacher at Aakash Institute, Faridabad. Like many others, she also achieved the rank in first attempt. In fact, Avika is the only girl in the top 10 candidates. The Faridabad girl is excited to begin her medical studies at AIIMS, New Delhi. When the National Testing Agency (NTA) declared the NEET results Saturday, the merit list was topped by Mahesh Kumar from Rajasthan, followed by Utkarsh Awadhiya from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra's Krishang. Born to a government teacher couple, Mahesh hails from Hanumangarh in Rajasthan's Bikaner district. He prepared for the NEET exam at Gurukripa Institute in Sikar, Rajasthan, while staying in a hostel. He completed his 12th from Astha Academy School in Sikar as well. ThePrint reached out to Mahesh but as he was unwell, his mother Hemlata said that the teenager plans to get admission at the AIIMS, Delhi but is currently undecided on the medical field that he wants to pursue. 'Last year Mahesh was underage to appear for the NEET and this year, he secured rank 1 in the first attempt. We came to know about the result when the people from Guru Kripa Institute informed us,' she said. The entire family, she added, was elated with the achievement of Mahesh. Considered a difficult and challenging exam, the NEET 2025 was reported to be tougher than preceding years. The Physics paper was especially said to be hard by many NEET aspirants. This year, candidates had only 3 hours to complete the exam, instead of the usual 3 hours and 20 minutes given earlier. More than 22 lakh candidates appeared for the NEET-UG exam that was held 4 May across 552 cities at 5,468 different centres. The exam was conducted in 13 languages. Apart from India, the exam was also conducted internationally in 14 cities, including Bangkok, Dubai, Colombo, Singapore, and Muscat. (Edited by Tony Rai) Also Read: India's fertility rate below replacement level, financial strain a key factor, finds UN report
Time of India
5 hours ago
- Time of India
Coimbatore girl secures AIR 40 in NEET but name missing from official rank list
N Abishya COIMBATORE: A Coimbatore girl has secured All India Rank (AIR) 40 in NEET 2025 with 680 marks, but her name was not reflected on the official rank list released by the National Testing Agency (NTA). According to the NEET 2025 results declared by NTA on Saturday, six students from Tamil Nadu secured ranks within the top 100 at the national level. Among them was Soorya Narayanan S from Tirunelveli, who was declared the state topper with 665 out of 720 marks and secured AIR 27. However, N Abishya of Selvapuram in Coimbatore scored 680 marks -- 15 marks more than the declared state topper -- and secured AIR 40. Despite her higher score, her name was not featured on the top 100 rank list published by the agency. Her father, Nelson, said that they had sent an email complaint to the NTA seeking clarification regarding the discrepancy. 'This was her third attempt. She scored 570 marks last year,' he added. Follow more information on Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad here . Get real-time live updates on rescue operations and check full list of passengers onboard AI 171 .
