NEET-PG Aspirants Face Brief Panic Over Incorrect Exam Centre Details

Several NEET-PG aspirants from Kerala experienced a tense evening after receiving messages indicating that they had been assigned examination centres in distant parts of the country for the postgraduate medical entrance test scheduled on August 30.

The confusion began when the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) sent SMS and email notifications containing test-city information. Some candidates from Kerala were surprised to find centres listed in states and regions including Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka and Rajasthan.

The unexpected allocations caused considerable anxiety among candidates who had been preparing for months. Many began discussing the situation with fellow aspirants, while others started checking flight and train availability and calculating the cost and time involved in travelling to unfamiliar cities.

The concern was short-lived, however. Candidates who subsequently checked the NBEMS website found that their allotted test cities had been updated. Several aspirants were reassigned centres within Kerala. Candidates from northern parts of the country also reported that their initial notifications had listed cities in Kerala and Tamil Nadu before the details were corrected.

NBEMS later clarified that the incorrect information sent through SMS and email resulted from a technical error. The examination authority said revised and accurate test-city details had subsequently been communicated to the affected candidates through the same channels.

Although the error was resolved, the incident briefly added significant stress for students preparing for one of the country’s most competitive medical entrance examinations. For candidates facing the possibility of travelling hundreds or even thousands of kilometres, the prospect raised concerns over arranging transport, accommodation and travel time so close to the examination.

The NEET-PG 2026 examination is scheduled to take place on August 30. NBEMS has advised candidates to regularly monitor its official website for further announcements and updates regarding the examination.

The episode highlights how even a temporary communication error can create considerable uncertainty for thousands of examination candidates, particularly when travel arrangements depend on accurate centre information.