NEET re-test: City change made through candidate's login, says NTA on Abu Dhabi centre row
New Delhi, June 20
The National Testing Agency on Saturday responded to the controversy surrounding a NEET-UG 2026 candidate from Nagpur who was allotted an examination centre in Abu Dhabi, stating that its web-activity records indicate that the city change was made through the candidate's own registered login during the correction window.
However, the agency added that despite the circumstances, it accepted the aspirant's request and processed a change of examination centre.
NTA took to social media 'X' and said, "Reference the issue with regard to allotment of a centre in Abu Dhabi to a candidate in Nagpur, NTA would like to state: Following the rescheduling of NEET (UG) 2026 to 21 June, the National Testing Agency reopened the examination-city correction window to assist candidates."
The agency highlighted that nearly 3.2 lakh candidates used the correction facility and that more than 99.5 per cent were allotted their preferred examination cities.
Addressing the Abu Dhabi query, the NTA stated, "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 further said that it received an informal request on the evening of June 19 just 48 hours before the examination to shift the centre from Abu Dhabi to Nagpur.
"NTA personnel immediately initiated the change and contacted the candidate's father on 19th evening itself to help them complete the formal process," the statement said.
According to the NTA, its records show that the examination centre was changed to Abu Dhabi once using the candidate's credentials and was previewed twice thereafter.
"NTA has observed that on 3 occasions, one - the centre was changed to Abu Dhabi using candidate's credentials and twice it was previewed that the centre is Abu Dhabi. Despite that NTA has accorded to aspirant's request and the change of centre was actioned. A "Student-First" Approach: The NTA's priority is that no candidate misses the examination over an administrative doubt," it added.
The controversy emerged after Abdullah Talib, a resident of Nagpur, was reportedly allotted an examination centre in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, for the Re-NEET UG 2026 examination scheduled for June 21.
According to the family, Abdullah had selected Nagpur, Wardha, and Bhandara as his preferred examination cities while filling out the application form. However, when the admit card was issued, it displayed an examination centre in Abu Dhabi instead of any location in Maharashtra.
The apparent administrative error caused considerable distress to the student and his family, especially with only a day remaining before the re-examination. Notably, Abdullah had appeared for the earlier NEET examination at a centre in Nagpur.
The situation became even more alarming because the student does not possess a passport, making overseas travel impossible.
The incident quickly gained traction on social media, with students and parents raising concerns over how such a significant error could occur in one of the country's largest and most competitive entrance examinations.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Yaar, but how can a student from Nagpur with no passport even think of Abu Dhabi? Something is fishy. Maybe someone else logged in using his credentials? NTA should investigate further, not just say 'records show it was him'. Cybersecurity in these exams is a joke.
Classic case of 'administrative error' but NTA covering their tracks. 3.2 lakh corrections and still this happens? Aur phir blame the student? Unfair. But glad they changed it last minute—at least the kid won't miss the exam. Needs a proper audit of the system.
I have to say, as someone who's observed Indian exam systems from abroad, this seems like a genuine mix-up. The NTA's transparency about the web records is decent. But the bigger question: why is there a centre in Abu Dhabi for an Indian exam? And the passport issue makes it even stranger.
NTA ki 'student-first' approach is just PR. If the system is so secure, how did a kid from Maharashtra end up with Abu Dhabi? And the parents only noticed at the last moment? I think either the student experimented with the correction window or there's a security flaw. Either way, the family deserves answers, not just a quick fix.
🤔 I feel bad for the student. Imagine seeing your admit card with 'Abu Dhabi' while sitting in Nagpur without a passport! The stress must have been unimaginable. Kudos to NTA for fixing it, but please improve the system so this doesn't happen again. Our future doctors deserve better! 💪
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