NEET 2026 Exam Today: 22.79 Lakh Students to Appear Across 551 Cities; NTA Deployed 2 Lakh Staff Across 5432 Centres
NEET 2026 exam will be conducted today for 22.79 lakh candidates. The exam will be held between 2 PM to 5 PM across 551 cities and 5,432 exam centres. Check NTA NEET 2026 exam advisory, NEET exam dress code for female 2026, reporting time, and permissible items inside the exam hall. Know NEET exam starting time and how many candidates applied for NEET 2026 here.
National Testing Agency is set to conduct NEET 2026 exam today. The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for undergraduates will be conducted between 2 PM to 5 PM. Over 22.79 lakh candidates will appear in NEET UG 2026 exam across 551 cities in India and 14 cities abroad. This exam will be conducted for students willing to get admission to MBBS, BDS and other allied medical courses. NTA has made preparations to ensure smooth and secure conduct of exam this year. NEET 2026 NTA notification further highlights that NTA has employed more than 2 lakh personnel across 5,432 centres.
There will be 674 city coordinators and 6,000 observers to ensure there is no glitch while conducting the examination. There will be biometric machines and trained staff for candidate verification during mandatory security checks. Along with tight security, NTA NEET 2026 guidelines cover reporting time, dress code, and permitted items. NTA has also advised candidates to plan their travel in advance and consider traffic and weather conditions while planning.
NEET Exam Starting Time and Reporting Schedule
Commonly asked questions
In case candidates are not allotted any seat in the second round of the NEET UG counselling, the earlier allotted seat in Round 1 will be retained. However, on up-gradation of a seat in the second round, the earlier allotted seat in Round 1 will automatically be cancelled and allotted to another candidate. Therefore, candidates are advised to fill in only higher choices or any other choice which they prefer over the earlier allotted seat, for second round.
Although earlier NTA was mulling the idea of conducting NEET twice a year, now it has been confirmed that the exam will be held only once a year in a paper-pencil based mode. NTA communicated this information through an RTI response where it was stated that NEET will be conducted once a year. This has quashed the possibility of conducting NEET twice a year. However, the NTA expert committee headed by ISRO Chief K. Radhakrishnan has recommended conducting NEET twice a year, but there has not been any official confirmation on it yet.
The NEET exam starting time is 2:00 PM and will continue till 5:00 PM. However, disabled candidates eligible for compensatory time can write the exam till 6:00 PM. Students have to report at the exam centre between 11:00 AM and 1:30 PM. Entry gates will close at 1:30 PM, and no candidate will be allowed entry after 1:30 PM.
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NTA NEET 2026 Exam Advisory
Students can check the NEET UG 2026 exam instructions by NTA below:
NTA NEET 2026 Exam Advisory and Permitted Items
According to NTA NEET 2026 exam advisory, candidates can carry a transparent water bottle inside the exam hall. Diabetic candidates can carry sugar tablets and fruits such as banana, apple, and oranges.
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Mayank Uniyal is an MCom graduate in International Business. He has over 7 years of experience in content writing. He has been working in the education domain since the beginning of his career. He covers news and up
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