The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced that the re-examination for NEET UG 2026 will be conducted on June 21, 2026, following the cancellation of the original exam over allegations of a major paper leak.

“The National Testing Agency, with the approval of the Government of India, has scheduled the re-examination of NEET (UG) 2026 on Sunday, 21 June 2026. Candidates and parents are requested to rely only on the official channels of NTA,” the agency wrote on X.

The NEET UG 2026 exam, initially held on May 3, was scrapped after investigators found evidence suggesting that question papers had been leaked before the test. More than 22 lakh candidates who appeared for the examination will now have to retake it.

Why was the NEET UG 2026 exam cancelled?

The controversy erupted after an alleged “guess paper” circulated on platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram ahead of the examination. Investigations by the Rajasthan Special Operations Group (SOG) and other agencies found that several questions matched the actual exam paper, according to a report by The Indian Express.

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The Ministry of Education has now handed over the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a detailed probe.

In its statement, the NTA said the decision to conduct the exam again was taken to safeguard the “fairness, transparency and credibility” of the national-level entrance examination process, despite the inconvenience caused to students.

Dharmendra Pradhan chaired ‘high-level’ meet on Thursday

Two days after the cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 amid allegations of a paper leak, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday evening chaired the first high-level meeting with senior officials to discuss preparations for the upcoming re-examination. The meeting was focused primarily on the NEET re-exam.

“A high-level meeting was held late tonight at the residence of the Education Minister, where detailed discussions took place regarding the upcoming NEET examination,” a source told ANI.

Held at the minister’s residence, the meeting was attended by several senior officials, including Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, School Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar, Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA) Abhishek Singh, CBSE Chairperson Rahul Singh, and commissioners of the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS), among others.

Investigation and nationwide concerns

The issue has once again raised questions over the security of major competitive examinations in India. NEET UG 2026 was conducted at over 5,400 centres across India and abroad.

Investigators have reportedly traced the leak network to multiple states, including Rajasthan, Kerala, Delhi and Haryana. The controversy also triggered protests in several cities, with students and parents demanding accountability and stricter examination safeguards.

Important details for candidates

Candidates will not be required to submit fresh applications or pay additional fees for the re-test. The NTA said all previous registrations and exam city preferences will remain valid.

Fresh admit cards will be issued for the June 21 examination, while the earlier admit cards will no longer be valid.

Students have been advised to avoid misinformation circulating on social media and rely only on the official NTA NEET website for updates.

“The inputs received established that the present examination process could not be allowed to stand. The decision has been taken in the interest of students who deserve a fair and transparent examination process,” the NTA said.