Ahmedabad: Five students from Gujarat were among the country’s Top 100 in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-UG) 2026, the results of which were announced by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday evening. The exam was re-conducted following the paper leak controversy and cancellation of the original test. However, the state witnessed a sharp decline in the number of qualifying candidates compared to previous year, with education experts attributing it to the tougher re-examination and disruption in students’ preparation.The five Gujarat students in the Top 100 All India Ranks were Shaurya Patel (AIR 26), Akshit Gaur (AIR 30), Hiya Vasavada (AIR 43), Saumya Patel (AIR 57) and Premal Patel (AIR 93). Dhyan Shukla narrowly missed the list with AIR 101.According to NTA data, 79,190 students from Gujarat registered for the examination, of whom 68,833 appeared in the re-examination conducted in June. A total of 38,146 students qualified for admission to undergraduate medical and allied health courses.Compared to last year, when 50,040 students from Gujarat had qualified, the state has seen nearly 12,000 fewer successful candidates.Pankaj Baldi, coordinator of a coaching institute, said the impact of the re-examination was reflected in this year’s results. “The share of students with 700-plus marks has decreased this year. One of the factors is re-examination after the paper leak episode as the students lost momentum. Compared to last year, about 15 marks will be reduced in merit.”According to the medical education fraternity, around 25 students from Gujarat are among the top 500 candidates in the country. The state has nearly 7,700 MBBS seats across govt-run, govt-aided and private medical colleges.Experts said students generally found the re-examination tougher than the cancelled paper, and the admission scenario would become clearer once counselling begins next week. “The picture will be clearer in terms of seat allocation and overall trends – how many go for national institutions such as AIIMS and how many opt for top medical colleges in the state,” said a medical college official.Several high-ranking candidates are continuing family traditions in medicine. Rutwik Pethani (AIR 543) is the son of an orthopaedic surgeon and a dermatologist, while his sister is also a doctor. Aaryan Shah (AIR 373) is following in the footsteps of his father, an internal medicine specialist, and his mother, a nutritionist.“In such exams, presence of mind and time management are the key. Compared to the earlier exam, I lost a few marks in the re-examination,” said Aaryan.The results also highlight diverse backgrounds. Jenil Shah (AIR 629) is the son of chartered accountants, while Swayam Suthar (AIR 332) will become the first doctor in his family. Jenil said he was always drawn towards biology and wanted to pursue medicine, while Swayam hopes to become a surgeon.“After cancellation of the examination, there was pressure for all involved. It also resulted in a break in the momentum that was going on for about two years,” said Swayam.Education experts believe the relatively tougher re-examination and the interruption caused by the paper leak episode was likely to lower this year’s admission cut-offs across medical colleges in Gujarat and the rest of the country.
