HQ Team
January 16, 2926: In an unprecedented move that has sparked nationwide outrage among medical professionals in India, the National Board of Examinations (NBE) has reduced the qualifying cutoff for NEET-PG 2025-2026 to as low as the zero percentile, allowing candidates with negative scores to pursue postgraduate medical specializations. The controversial decision, notified on January 13, 2026, has now landed in the Supreme Court through a public interest litigation while triggering threats of nationwide protests from doctor associations.
According to the revised criteria, the qualifying cutoff for General/EWS (Economically Weaker Section) categories now stands at the 7th percentile (score of 103), while Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, and OBC (other backward classes)candidates need only reach the 0th percentile, a score of negative 40 marks, to qualify for specialist training. This marks a dramatic departure from previous standards and effectively eliminates merit-based selection, argue petitioners who have challenged the decision as unconstitutional and dangerous.
Constitutional challenge in Supreme Court
A PIL filed by social worker Harisharan Devgan along with prominent doctors ,including neurosurgeon Dr. Saurav Kumar and United Doctors Front President Dr. Lakshya Mittal, argues that the cutoff reduction violates Articles 14 (right to equality) and 21 (right to life) of the Constitution. The petitioners contend that lowering medical education standards “institutionalizes dilution of professional standards in a life-critical field” and poses a direct threat to patient safety and public health.
“Medicine is not an ordinary vocation; it directly implicates human life, bodily integrity, and dignity,” the plea states, calling the move “arbitrary” and contrary to the statutory mandate of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019. The petition, filed through Advocate-on-Record Neema with assistance from Advocates Satyam Singh Rajput and Adarsh Singh, seeks immediate restoration of original qualifying criteria.
Medical fraternity uprising
The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) and Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) have strongly condemned the decision in separate letters to Union Health Minister JP Nadda. Describing it as a “blow to meritocracy,” Dr. Devaunshi Kaul and Dr. Meet Ghonia of FORDA warned that allowing candidates with negative marks to become specialists “compromises future healthcare quality and erodes public trust.”
FAIMA has issued a stark ultimatum: initiate nationwide protests if “corrective action” is not taken promptly. “Allowing candidates with negative marks to qualify cannot be justified under any academic or ethical standards,” the association stated, highlighting concerns about specialist quality and threats to vulnerable populations dependent on government hospitals.
Dr. Rohan Krishnan, FAIMA’s Chief Patron, alleged the move primarily benefits private medical colleges struggling to fill seats that “cost crores of rupees.” He claimed approximately 50 percent of Indian doctors fail foreign medical examinations like UK’s MRCP or Australia’s AMC, emphasizing that merit-based filtering ensures healthcare quality.
Government’s justification and implications
The NBE notice states the reduction follows Health Ministry directions dated January 9, 2026, aimed at filling vacant postgraduate seats. However, critics argue this prioritizes institutional profits over academic excellence and patient welfare. The move comes amid ongoing controversies surrounding medical education reforms and has reignited debates about commercialization in healthcare training.
Doctors warn that diluting standards at the postgraduate level where specialists trained to handle complex cases in premier institutions like AIIMs could severely compromise India’s healthcare system and damage the international reputation of Indian medical professionals.
Escalating crisis
With the Supreme Court now seized of the matter and medical associations mobilizing for potential strikes, the government faces mounting pressure to reverse the decision. FORDA has demanded formation of a high-level committee comprising the National Medical Commission, NBE, and resident doctor representatives to transparently review cutoff policies, while FAIMA threatens coordinated nationwide protests across hospitals.
As the standoff intensifies, the core question remains whether filling vacant seats justifies potentially compromising the quality of specialists tasked with safeguarding millions of lives. The medical community’s unified resistance suggests a prolonged confrontation ahead unless authorities restore merit-based standards.
