The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has declared the exam centres of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) 2018. The board is set to conduct the exam on May 6, 2018 but a major decision of the Supreme Court has come as a big shock to all the NEET aspirants. The court has rejected the order by Madras High Court and has directed Tamil Nadu students to travel till Kerala to appear for the NEET UG exam. While the exam is just around the corner and students are hustling around the sudden decision to travel from one place to another, here are the important details that you should know about NEET 2018.

Given the large number of aspirants appearing for NEET, CBSE will conduct the entrance exam in almost all the states and union territories of India. Apart from Tamil Nadu students, the exam centre allotted to a candidate on the admit card is final. There will not be any changes.

NEET 2018 Exam Date

This year, the medical aspirants will attend NEET on May 6 across the states and union territories at various examination centres in India.

How to locate NEET Exam Centre? 

The examination centre is mentioned on the NEET admit cards as provided by the CBSE. The hall tickets are available for the students to download. It is advised to all the candidates to visit their allotted centre a day ahead of the exam. There will not be any change of examination centre at this moment.

NEET 2018 Admit Card

In April, CBSE issued the Admit Cards for NEET 2018 at their official websites. If the candidates have not downloaded the hall tickets yet, they must visit cbseneet.ac.in as no hard copies of the same would be sent to them by post. The students must take a print out of NEET admit card to know their examination centres, important instructions and most importantly, to get an entry into the exam halls.

NEET 2018 Exam Paper Pattern

The question paper for NEET will comprise of 180 multiple-choice questions each carrying 4 marks. Candidates opting for vernacular languages will be provided with the paper in three languages—English, Hindi and the language chosen by them. The questions will be of Physics, Chemistry and Biology (Botany and Zoology) section and it is a three hours offline examination. For each correct answer, the students will be awarded with 4 marks. But the candidates are recommended to answer only those that they are sure as there are negative markings. 1 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.

NEET 2018 Important Details on the Exam Day

1. Medical aspirants will sit for NEET on May 6, 2018 at various examination centres across the nation.

2. The entry to the exam centre of NEET 2018 will begin from 7:30 am.

3. No candidate will be allowed to enter the exam hall after 9:30 am; hence it is advised to reach early at the venue.

4. All students must carry a print out of the NEET 2018 Admit Card and a passport size photograph to get an entry into the examination hall.

5. Any stationary items, communication devices (mobile phones, earphones, etc.), ornaments, watches, wallets, handbags, hair pin, belt, cap, scarf and other metallic items are not allowed inside the exam hall.

6. Students must wear slippers and sandals only to the examination hall. Shoes are not allowed.

7. Before leaving the examination hall, the candidates must submit their answer sheet to the invigilator and sign the attendance sheet.

NEET is India’s largest medical entrance test and the scores are used for admissions in MBBS and BDS courses. Quoting media reports this year, 1000 to 1500 students will have to travel to Ernakulum and other centres in Kerala to appear for their NEET UG 2018. While many are raising voice against this decision, the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) led by T.T.V. Dinakaran announced on May 4 that it will help with the lodging facilities to all the NEET aspirants from Tamil Nadu who have been allotted exam centres in neighbouring Kerala.  Meanwhile, the government of Tamil Nadu announces to provide a second-class train ticket and an assistance of Rs. 1000. It is indeed sad that right ahead of examination, the students will have to travel to long distance. But we still hope that the exam run smoothly and wish all the NEET aspirants all the very best for their exam.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 04, 2018 04:54 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).