CHENNAI: A majority of the students who appeared for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) on Sunday described the paper as moderately difficult. While the physics section was considered tough, chemistry had a few tricky questions, and biology, though relatively easy, was time-consuming. Given the overall difficulty compared to previous years, students and coaching centres expect the cut-off marks to drop, at least marginally.
According to sources, nearly 1.5 lakh students had registered for NEET 2025 from Tamil Nadu, with around 20,000 appearing for the exam in Chennai district alone. “The biology paper was time-consuming, so I couldn’t complete it on time. Physics and chemistry were moderately difficult,” said a student, who took the exam at Guru Nanak College.
Several students and experts noted that the physics section was as tough as, or even tougher than the 2019 NEET paper, which was widely regarded as one of the most difficult in recent years. “Students will still need to score above 650 out of 720 to secure admission in a top medical college, even though cut-offs may drop slightly,” said career guidance expert Jayaprakash Gandhi. He added that students attempting the exam for the first time struggled more, while repeaters are likely to perform better.
Girl denied entry over steel buttons, cop comes to rescue
The exam day was also marred by several incidents of confusion and strict entry checks across Tamil Nadu. In Tiruppur, S Kanimozhi, a student from Uthukuli, was barred from entering an exam centre in TM Poondi due to the steel buttons on her dress. However, MR Manimegalai, a woman police constable, who was on duty there, stepped in to the student’s aid. After securing permission from higher officials, she took the student to a nearby store on her bike and helped her buy a new outfit.
Of the 3,212 students who had registered in Tiruppur, 107 were absent. Whereas in Erode, 98 of the 4,162 registered students did not appear.
In Dharmapuri, nine students mistakenly went to Salem due to misleading hall ticket details, which listed “Government Arts College” on “Salem Bypass Road” without specifying the district. With the assistance of Salem police, seven students reached the correct venue on time, but the other two did not make it. “Had the NTA clearly mentioned the district, this stress could have been avoided,” a parent told TNIE.
At the Tiruchengode Girls Higher Secondary School exam centre, biometric attendance was recorded for around 400 of the 711 registered candidates before the system malfunctioned. As a result, over 300 students wrote the exam without biometric verification. Worried that this might affect their children’s results, parents demanded an explanation and staged a road roko on the Tiruchengode-Sangagiri road, despite staff assuring them that alternative arrangements were made. Police officials later pacified the protesting parents.
Government school sends 80 students to exam
In a bid to continue its strong record in medical admissions, Keeramangalam Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Pudukkottai district sent 80 students, including 55 freshers and 25 repeaters, for NEET 2025. The school has produced 27 medical students in the past five years, under Tamil Nadu’s 7.5% government school quota.
Further, the school arranged three buses to help students reach exam centres in Pudukkottai, Tiruchy and Gandarvakottai. “As we are in a rural area, travel is always a challenge. Staff stayed back till 8:30 pm to ensure all students returned safely,” said headmistress Valli Nayagi.
In Karur, 42-year-old IT employee Krishnakumar appeared for NEET for the first time, fulfilling a long-time dream.
(With inputs from Tiruppur, Dharmapuri, Namakkal and Karur)