Bengaluru: A wave of shock, disbelief and disappointment gripped 1.5 lakh students in Karnataka who appeared for May 3 NEET, gateway for admission to medical courses, following reports of question paper leak.“Many of us are emotionally drained. It is not easy to regain the momentum,” said a candidate, who now has to write NEET afresh.After months of gruelling preparation and attending college and coaching back to back with no downtime, students were expecting a quiet period to recoup and look forward to allotment of seats when the news of paper leak and cancellation of exam hit them like a thunderbolt.“What NTA (National Testing Agency, which conducts exam) has done is unforgivable. After last year’s disappointment, I put in so much effort. It’s heartbreaking now. NTA should take more care and responsibility. This kind of development takes a toll on our health,” said RC Prateeksha, a drop-year student at Aakash, a training institute.Several students expressed fears of burnout, besides reduced preparation time for a re-test. “It’s a nightmare to return to the syllabus just when we were getting ready to move on. I can’t shift to other career options. And I can’t give up on my dream, either,” said Susiraji K, a long-term NEET aspirant.Logistics is another pain point. “My child has to travel back to his residential school at Karkala in coastal Udupi district. Now, he’s saying he wouldn’t write the exam again,” said his father, saddled with the unpleasant task of convincing his son to reappear for the test.“Students are out of exam mode. Students who secured good marks — especially between 500 and 580 — are upset. Those with less marks feel this is a second opportunity,” said Raghavendra Hegde, a chemistry teacher and NEET guide.BOX:Quote hangers with photosMany students are reluctant to take the retest as they are either disappointed or in a holiday mood. They are looking at engineering, instead. After paper leak, they are uncertain if the next exam would be fair or incident-free.Sridhar G | Founder, Deeksha NetworksAs a topper’s parent, I’m relieved at the retest. My son — with a score of 685 as per NTA key answer — was aspiring for Bangalore Medical College. He feared the college might be out of reach if others indulging in malpractice got better scores. We are happy at the retest.Muniswamy Thimmegowda | parentIt was my drop year, and I suffered multiple breakdowns in the past year. Compared with previous years, the 2026 paper was easier. Now, I won’t write the re-exam. I’ll prepare for CUET, instead.Priyani Sarkar | Adamas World SchoolThis was my first drop year. I was confident of getting a dental seat. Now, I have to restart. I’ll never be able to trust NTA again.Aayushi Priya | student— Nadi Ganadhal
