2 years of preparations have gone down the drain, rue NEET aspirants; nearly 55K from Odisha sat for exam

Bhubaneswar: The cancellation of NEET-UG has deeply affected medical aspirants in Odisha, with many questioning the futility of months of rigorous preparation and sacrifices as they stare at uncertainty.The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Tuesday cancelled the exam conducted on May 3 following allegations of a paper leak and announced that fresh dates for the exam would be declared later. Around 55,000 students from Odisha had appeared for NEET-UG this year for admission in medical colleges within and outside the state.The sudden move has left students mentally exhausted after months, and in many cases years, of intense preparation. Aspirants accused the NTA of corruption and of playing with their careers.Students said this was not the first time the country’s biggest medical entrance examination was mired in allegations of paper leak and corruption. For the fault of a few, lakhs of aspirants are suffering, they rued.“I gave two years of my life preparing for NEET. I wrote the exam so well that I was almost sure of qualifying. But if I have to appear again, I cannot be sure of a similar performance because several external factors influence exam performance. I made almost negligible errors,” lamented Swastik Patnaik.For Khirabdhi Tanaya Samal, this was her first attempt at NEET-UG after two years of preparation. “The paper was moderate and I was expecting a score of around 590 to 610. My calculated marks as per the NTA answer key were satisfactory and I was hoping for a good rank and a govt medical seat. But now it feels like all the effort has gone down the drain,” she said.Though disappointed, students are now bracing for the retest. However, many fear they have already lost crucial preparation time after taking a break following the May 3 exam.“If there is a e-NEET (re-exam), it is going to be tougher and we will need time to prepare again. The pressure this time will be much more, but all we can do now is revise and wait for further notice from the NTA,” said another aspirant, Shagun Samantarai.Academics termed the development deeply disturbing and said repeated controversies surrounding national-level exams are eroding students’ trust in the system.“NEET is one of the country’s most competitive examinations. Any compromise in its integrity affects lakhs of honest students,” said educationist R N Panda. He added that students from smaller towns and modest backgrounds suffer the most as they invest years of effort and significant resources into these examinations.