New Delhi: NEET answer key challenged by students

NEW DELHI:With just a week left for the NEET examination results to be announced, a fresh controversy has arisen, with students challenging the answer key released by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). The answer booklet was released earlier in the week. The students are claiming answers to three questions, two in the Chemistry section and one in Biology to have been marked wrongly in the answer key.

The answer key released on August 8 carrying answers to both phases of NEET held on May 1 and July 24, and were left open to the students to challenge till August 10. The students challenged three of the published answers saying,”“If our answer is correct and we’ve been marked wrongly, then we stand to get five marks for each correct answer. Every mark can change ranks by several notches and so we will fight tooth and nail to prove our point.”

“A student is awarded four marks for every correct answer and a negative mark for every wrong one. Looking at the bulk of students who have pointed out the same mistakes, looks like CBSE will have to take this into consideration,” said Rajesh Jain, from the Parents’ Association for Medical Students (PAMS). He added that many students had already challenged these questions and were hoping for a positive reaction from the authorities.

According to CBSE officials an expert committee would be looking into the challenged questions and a reply furnished in the near future. As of now, students will have to wait for some clarity on the issue,” Rama Sharma, CBSE public relations officer (PRO) told HT. The NEET results will be announced on August 17