NEW DELHI: In a major reform, the Centre has introduced one-time physical reporting for NEET-UG counselling, ending repeated visits to allotted medical colleges for candidates seeking a seat upgrade.Aspirants allotted a seat in the first or second round can now complete subsequent reporting and document verification online while retaining their seat for further rounds.Under the new framework, candidates opting for the “Float” option can complete document verification online and receive provisional admission while retaining their allotted seat for subsequent rounds. If allotted a better seat, the earlier one will automatically be released to another candidateThose choosing the “Freeze” option, or retaining a seat after the third round, must report physically to complete admission formalities, including verification of original documents and payment of fees.
The reforms were reviewed by Union health minister J P Nadda on Wednesday ahead of the start of NEETUG counselling.“Earlier, every candidate allotted a seat had to physically report to the college even if they wanted to participate in the next round for a better option,” said Dr B Srinivas, deputy director general (medical education), ministry of health and family welfare.“Now, they can complete document verification online, retain the allotted seat and continue in the counselling process. If they get a better seat, the earlier one will be released to another candidate. If not, they will retain their original seat.”The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has also introduced online resignation, allowing eligible candidates to surrender their allotted seat through the counselling portal instead of visiting the institute. Another major change is the complete digitisation of admissions under the NRI category.Candidates requiring additional eligibility documents will now upload them through a dedicated portal instead of sending them by email. “Earlier, these documents sometimes landed in spam folders or were missed, delaying verification. The new software allows direct online verification…” Srinivas said.
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To improve transparency, the counselling system will use pre-populated candidate data from the National Testing Agency, online document verification, NMC-validated seat matrices and enhanced cybersecurity measures developed with the National Informatics Centre.The Centre has also raised the number of assessment centres for persons with benchmark disabilities (PwBD) from 16 to 61 and introduced an Appellate Disability Assessment Board under revised NMC guidelines.Nadda directed officials to ensure a transparent, meritbased counselling process.
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