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According to data from New Delhi, there was a regional decline in attendance for the NEET-UG exam in 2026. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka recorded high rates of participant absence, while Rajasthan increased its candidate base and demonstrated the highest qualification level among major states.

Attendance Statistics by State

Kerala registered 1.14 lakh registrations, but only 84,664 candidates actually appeared, meaning 29,122 people were absent (25.6%). In Tamil Nadu, 33,893 out of 1.42 lakh registered did not attend (23.8%), and Karnataka recorded 28,288 instances of non-attendance (19.4%).

The absence rate in Maharashtra was lower but still high—9.8%, with 21,749 candidates not showing up for the exam. These figures are calculated based on the total number of registrations. In contrast, in northern regions like Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, the absence rate was 7.9% and 7.6%, respectively.

Changes in Registration Dynamics

The number of attendees in Kerala decreased from 1.22 lakh in 2025 to 84,664 this year, representing a drop of more than 30%. The number of qualified candidates in Kerala decreased by 21,546, totaling 51,782. In Tamil Nadu, despite an increase in registrations by 2,336 compared to last year, 27,114 fewer people attended, and the number of qualifiers decreased by 14,875. In Karnataka, the number of qualifiers fell by 17,681.

Growth in Rajasthan and Other Regions

Rajasthan showed the opposite trend: the number of registrations grew by 15.5%, reaching nearly 2.1 lakh from the previous 1.81 lakh. Furthermore, the number of qualified candidates increased by 13,275, totaling 1.33 lakh. The state achieved a qualification rate of 69.3% among those who appeared, which is the highest among large states and strengthens Rajasthan's reputation as a center for medical entrance preparation in the country.

In Punjab, registrations rose by 18.6% to 34,858, and in Jammu and Kashmir—from 50,957 to 56,420. The 'other, including outside India' category more than doubled, increasing from 1,997 to 4,732. NRI registrations increased from 741 to 1,066, representing an increase of almost 44%.

Following the cancellation of the NEET-UG exam in May, which tested participants' knowledge, and its subsequent re-administration in June, nearly two million applicants received an unexpected second chance. Many of them resumed their preparation, restoring study materials, limiting mobile phone use, and continuing their studies under difficult conditions.

Resumption of Preparation

Participants recovered their study guides, which they had previously shared with others. Some, for instance, in Baramati, took a break from using mobile phones, while in Hanumangarh, they prepared in Hindi. In Srinagar, studies continued even during power outages.

Results of the Second Chance

On Thursday, the names of these students appeared on a unified list of notable achievers, reflecting not only their scores but also their ability to cope with having to take the exam twice. Aryan Gupta achieved the highest score in the country, scoring 715 out of 720, which secured him AIR 1. He stated that he decided not to think too much about it.

Other Achievements Among Applicants

After sharing the top score, Panshul Bansal from Faridabad secured second place in the ranking due to tie-breaking rules. His father recounted discovering him crying after the exam cancellation announcement, but Panshul quickly returned to his pursuits of music, badminton, Rubik's cubes, and disciplined study.

Diversity of Successes

Only 19 out of almost two million candidates crossed the 700-mark threshold. Shravani from Baramati, who ranked AIR 5, used daily meditation to reduce pressure. The list also noted more modest breakthroughs: Ayush Bhalotia from Nawada, who ranked AIR 4, will be the first doctor from his village in Bihar. Abhilash from Hanumangarh, who ranked AIR 11, became the leader among those who took the exam in Indian language, choosing Hindi. Adiya Nisar from Srinagar, who ranked AIR 99, studied during power cuts and dedicated her result to 'every girl in Kashmir' dreaming of medicine.

In 2026, women made up the majority among applicants and those who qualified for NEET-UG, but their share significantly decreased among the top performers, as only 30 out of 138 candidates scored 690 or above.

Participation and Performance Statistics

Women registered in a number of 13.3 lakh out of a total of 22.8 lakh registrations, which accounts for 58.5%. Furthermore, they constituted 6.5 lakh out of 11.2 lakh candidates who successfully passed the re-examination. The success rate among participating women reached 56.8%, slightly higher than the 55.1% for men. Nevertheless, women accounted for only 21.7% of the list of candidates with scores of 690 and above, indicating a persistent gap between preparation and reaching the pinnacle.

Rating Leaders

Only two women made it into the top 10: Kudale Shravani Krishna from Maharashtra with a National Rank (AIR) of 5, and Riya Ranjan from Bihar with an AIR of 6. Both are candidates from the OBC category. Among the 44 candidates noted as the best from states, territories, or international participants, 13 were women.

Geography and Leader Categories

Aryan Gupta from Punjab took the first spot in the ranking, followed by Panshul Bansal from Haryana and Uplakshya Goyal from Rajasthan. Bihar represented two candidates in the top six: Ayush Bhalotia with an AIR of 4 and Ranjan with an AIR of 6. Rajasthan showed the highest representation in the 690+ group, with 19 candidates, and Maharashtra had 18. Together, these two states provided 37 out of 138 candidates, accounting for 26.8%.

A significant number of candidates were also represented from Tamil Nadu (12), Delhi (11), Punjab (10), while Haryana, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh each contributed nine people to the 690+ club.

Social and Regional Structure

By category, the list included 102 candidates from the general category, 27 from the OBC-NCL category, five from General-EWS, and four from SC. No candidate from the ST category made it onto the list of those who scored 690 or above. This picture shows that representation narrows significantly at the highest level, although it should be remembered that this list is a score range and should not be confused with the final admission pool, where reservation rules, state quotas, and counseling apply.

The list of best from states reveals another discrepancy. While several large states prepared candidates who entered the national top, the best from Ladakh was ranked AIR 55,742, and from Lakshadweep, AIR 21,815. The best from Nagaland was ranked AIR 42,124, and from Dadra and Nagar Haveli, AIR 16,657. This range demonstrates an uneven distribution of results at the highest level across different regions, even with a single national list of examination merits.