NEET-UG Candidate's Abu Dhabi Centre Revised to Nagpur After Outcry

A NEET-UG 2026 candidate from Nagpur, who was initially allotted an examination centre in Abu Dhabi, appeared for the medical entrance re-test on Sunday after the National Testing Agency (NTA) revised his centre to Nagpur following widespread concern over the issue. The student reached PM SHRI Kendriya Vidyalaya, Ajni, Nagpur, to take the examination after receiving a fresh admit card on Saturday, news agency ANI reported.

The controversy surfaced when the candidate downloaded his admit card and found that his examination centre had been allotted in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, just a day before the exam. The matter gained traction on social media and was also raised by leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, who questioned the handling of students' concerns. The student's father said the family was shocked because they had not opted for an overseas examination centre.

"After the admit card was downloaded at 4 pm yesterday, we found the Centre mentioned to be a school in Abu Dhabi. We were really shocked as we had not given anything as such in our options," he said, as quoted by ANI. According to him, the family contacted the NTA helpline and was asked to send an email. He said officials later assured them that a revised admit card would be issued.

NTA revises centre

After verification, the NTA allotted the candidate a centre in Nagpur. The student's father expressed relief over the decision and thanked both the authorities and the media for highlighting the issue.

"Just 5 minutes ago, we received the fresh admit card with the exam centre in Nagpur. We are very thankful to the Agency for this prompt action. We are also thankful to the media for raising this issue," he said. He added that the episode had caused considerable stress to the student, who was initially reluctant to sit for the examination.

NTA says Abu Dhabi chosen through candidate login

While resolving the issue, the NTA also issued a clarification, stating that its records indicated the city change had been made through the candidate's own registered login during the correction window. "On the 'Abu Dhabi' query: NTA's web-activity records indicate that the city change in this case was made through the candidate's own registered login during the open correction window, with a consistent single-user access pattern," the agency said on X. However, the family disputed the claim and maintained that their preferred cities were Nagpur, Bhandara and Wardha. The incident came as the NTA conducts the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination on Sunday following the cancellation of the May 3 exam amid an ongoing probe into an alleged paper leak. The examination is being held at 5,440 centres across 551 Indian cities and 14 overseas locations. More than 95,000 examination rooms are equipped with CCTV surveillance, while 1.38 lakh cameras and over 51,000 jammers are deployed to ensure the smooth conduct of the test.