NEW DELHI: More than 2.7 lakh medical graduates have registered for NEET-PG 2026, an increase of over 12.5% over last year, as the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences rolls out enhanced authentication measures and candidate-friendly initiatives for the Aug 30 exam.Candidates will undergo Aadhaar-based authentication during registration and on the exam day, while iris-based biometric verification will be used wherever fingerprint authentication is unsuccessful. They will also have to indicate three preferred states for allotment of exam centres, with their correspondence state as mandatory first preference. The test city information will be issued nearly three weeks before the examination, enabling candidates to plan travel and accommodation in advance.

The exam will comprise 180 questions that have to be answered in 210 minutes, giving candidates more time per question while retaining the overall exam duration.Union health minister JP Nadda reviewed preparations for the examination Saturday and directed officials to ensure its smooth, transparent and technology-enabled conduct while maintaining the highest standards of security and integrity.
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He urged candidates not to fall prey to rumours or fraudulent claims regarding question paper leaks, saying the final paper is selected through a highly encrypted, time-bound process shortly before the exam, making any claim of prior access entirely false.Officials said the exam will be conducted under a multi-layered securityframework, which includes CCTV surveillance, biometric authentication, candidate frisking, signal jammers, dynamic computer allocation, live monitoring through central and regional command centres, and independent observers. More than 60,000 exam personnel will be deployed to oversee the process. The end-to-end question paper preparation and delivery process has been reinforced through multiple layers of encryption, secure offline preparation, time-bound finalisation of the paper shortly before the exam and controlled digital decryption at the scheduled commencement of test.NBEMS has also operationalised a dedicated email address to report impersonation, touting and other unfair practices while issuing regular advisories to candidates.
