NEET PG: expert panel proposes rank-based system instead of percentile cut-off, Centre tells SC

The Centre placed an expert committee's report before the Supreme Court on 3 November 2026. The report proposes that NEET PG and NEET SS move from a percentile-based qualifying system to a rank-based merit system. According to reports of the hearing by LiveLaw and Bar & Bench, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has given the proposal in-principle approval.

What was proposed

The 12-member committee was set up after the Supreme Court asked the Union government to audit the NEET PG admission system and suggest fixes. Today a candidate qualifies for NEET PG counselling by reaching a minimum percentile. The committee wants that replaced with a rank-based merit system for both NEET PG and NEET SS.

LiveLaw reports that the NMC will issue a draft regulation and invite comments from stakeholders before the change is final. The hearing reports we checked do not give a start year. We will add it when the draft regulation or the court's order states it.

Why it came up

The report was filed in the case challenging the reduction of the NEET PG 2025 qualifying cut-off. After that reduction, General category candidates qualified at the 7th percentile and SC, ST and OBC candidates at the 0th percentile. The bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe took the report on record and gave the petitioners time to respond. The court has not ruled on the case.

Other suggestions in the report

According to the hearing reports, the committee also suggested:

• a shorter gap between Round 2 and Round 3 of PG counselling;
• a fixed MCC counselling schedule for each year, submitted to the Supreme Court;
• KYC or biometric checks to stop seat blocking;
• lower fees for non-clinical courses, and no service bonds for pre-clinical and para-clinical courses;
• sharing NEET results online with state counselling authorities.

What this means for you now

These are proposals, not rules. NEET PG 2026 counselling continues under the current rules, and seats are still allotted by NEET PG rank. The proposal concerns NEET PG and NEET SS only, not the NEET UG exam for MBBS. We will update this story when the court's order or the NMC draft regulation is published.