First national medical exam goes smoothly

The first National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for entry into medical and dental colleges across the country went off smoothly on Sunday, with no errors reported.

The first National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for entry into medical and dental colleges across the country went off smoothly on Sunday, with no errors reported.

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This is the first time that NEET is being conducted in the country, instead of different entrance tests in each state. The results date hasn't been finalised yet but will likely be in a month.

"There were no reports of anything untoward," said Vineet Joshi, chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education, which conducted the exam this year. The three-hour, 720-mark exam was in pen-paper format.

The test will determine entry to 31,000 seats in 271 colleges across the country. After initial opposition to doing away with the state's common entrance test, Maharashtra agreed to join the national exam last year.

"The exam was fine, there were no errors," said one student. However, students said physics was tougher than the chemistry and biology sections. "It was slightly tougher than the All India Pre Medical Test [AIPMT] last year," said Aakash Chaudhry, director of Aakash Educational Services Limited, a coaching centre. The NEET replaced the AIPMT.