NEET PG 2025 exam date postponed to August 3, to be held in a single shift

NEET PG 2025 exam date: The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Postgraduate courses (NEET PG) 2025 has been postponed and will now be held on August 3, 2025, following an extension granted by the Supreme Court to the National Board of Examinations (NBE).

The exam was originally scheduled for June 15, 2025. The apex court clarified that no further extensions will be allowed.The Supreme Court has also mandated that the exam be conducted in a single shift to ensure fairness and transparency. The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) announced the postponement on May 27, 2025, after receiving the court’s directive, as quoted by ANI. The postponement allows the authorities to expand test centres and upgrade infrastructure to meet the court’s standards.Supreme court’s directive on single-shift examinationA bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Augustine George Masih emphasised that the exam must be held in one shift, as reported by ANI. Earlier, a vacation bench consisting of Justices Vikram Nath, Sanjay Kumar, and NK Anjaria had rejected NBE’s two-shift plan, describing it as “arbitrariness” and saying that “the question papers in the two shifts can never be of the same difficulty level,” according to ANI.

The court stressed the importance of providing a level playing field for all candidates and ordered the respondents to “make necessary arrangements for holding the NEET-PG 2025 examination in one shift, duly ensuring that complete transparency is maintained and secure centres are identified and commissioned,” as quoted by ANI.Challenges raised by NBE and court’s responseThe counsel for NBE informed the court that holding the exam in a single shift would require around 900 additional centres, which could not be arranged before the June 15 date.

The counsel also cited concerns about Wi-Fi infrastructure, computer security, and other logistical challenges, as reported by ANI.Despite these arguments, the Supreme Court expressed disbelief that sufficient centres could not be found in a technologically advanced country like India. The court remarked, “We are not ready to accept that in entire country and considering the technological advancements in this country the examining body could not find enough centres to hold the examination in one shift,” as quoted by ANI.NBEMS’s steps to ensure fairness and securityFollowing the Supreme Court’s order, NBEMS postponed the exam to allow for necessary preparations. The board stated, “NEET-PG 2025, scheduled to be held on 15.06.2025, has been postponed to arrange for more test centres and required infrastructure,” as reported by ANI. NBEMS also confirmed that the exam will now be conducted in a single shift, with the revised date notified in due course.This postponement aims to uphold the integrity of the exam, which is a vital gateway for admission to postgraduate medical courses across India. Conducting the test in one shift is expected to reduce discrepancies in question paper difficulty and provide a more transparent and equitable evaluation for all candidates.The Supreme Court has set a firm deadline for the NEET PG exam to be conducted in a single shift by August 3, 2025, with no further extensions. This move is intended to eliminate arbitrariness and ensure a fair exam environment. Candidates can now plan their preparations accordingly, confident that the exam process will be conducted under strict transparency and security guidelines, as mandated by the apex court and reported by ANI.