NEET-UG 2026 results: 11.2 Lakh qualify, Aryan Gupta, Panshul Bansal top

The National Testing Agency announced the NEET-UG 2026 results on 16 July. A total of 11.21 million candidates qualified for undergraduate medical, dental, AYUSH and allied courses, with women comprising more than 58 % of qualifiers. The re‑examination, held on 21 June after a May paper‑leak cancellation, was conducted at 5,440 centres in 551 Indian cities and 14 overseas locations, in 13 languages.

Punjab’s Aryan Gupta and Haryana’s Panshul Bansal were joint toppers, each scoring 715 out of 720. Nineteen candidates surpassed the 700‑mark mark and 138 scored above 690. A total of 1,492 candidates earned 650 or more marks. The overall qualification rate remained around 56 %, despite a drop in examinees from the previous year.

State‑wise, Uttar Pradesh produced the highest number of qualifiers (≈1.7 million), while Odisha saw over 28,000 students clear the re‑exam, including 11 tribal candidates from KISS. Telangana’s top performers included Viryah Giri Sahiv (AIR 13) and several others in the top 100. Jammu & Kashmir also reported strong results, highlighted by Gufran’s success on his second attempt.

The exam’s outcome coincided with a government expansion of MBBS seats to over 1.3 lakh, aiming to improve doctor‑to‑population ratios. In a related human‑interest incident, a bus driver in Kerala rescued an 18‑year‑old girl who had attempted suicide after being distressed by her NEET results, underscoring the high personal stakes of the examination.