4,068 MBBS, BDS seats empty: DMK MP writes to PM seeking NEET-UG percentile cut

By TUF News Desk · Published 21 October 2026 · 4 min read

Fact-checked against 2+ independent sources · Editorial policy

More than 4,000 medical seats sat empty at the end of this year’s counselling, and a Rajya Sabha MP is asking the Prime Minister to intervene. P Wilson, a DMK Rajya Sabha member from Tamil Nadu, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 19, urging the Centre to lower the NEET-UG 2026 qualifying percentile.

The fourth and final stray vacancy round opened with 4,068 seats (3,426 MBBS, 499 BDS, 143 B.Sc Nursing), of which 3,108 were allotted and more than 800 went unclaimed, according to The Times of India. The letter notes that last year, only 72 All India Quota MBBS seats stayed unfilled after four rounds.

Why the cut-off went this high

The 2026 cycle was unlike any before. The original May 3 examination was cancelled after the answer sheet leaked, and a fresh test was held on June 21. Absenteeism rose from 66,751 candidates (2.93%) in 2025 to 2,79,848 (12.28%) in 2026, the letter says, and since qualifying marks are fixed as a percentile of those who appear, the thinner cohort pushed the bar to its highest level ever. The letter notes MBBS seats grew to 1,40,664 while qualifiers fell from 12,36,531 to 11,21,185, and that the qualifying mark of 177 now required of OBC, SC and ST candidates tops the General category mark in every NEET-UG from 2016 to 2025. “Candidates who would have qualified in any previous year with the very same marks are excluded this year solely because of the circumstances in which the 2026 examination was held,” Wilson wrote.

Fees left hundreds of seats empty

Of the 837 MBBS seats that went unallotted in the MCC stray round, one was at AIIMS Madurai and 12 at a Chettinad institute in Kolar, Karnataka, while the remaining 824 sit in 14 deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, where annual fees run between Rs 23 lakh and Rs 35 lakh, according to The Times of India. Four colleges account for most of the empty seats: Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute in Chennai (188 seats, 75% of its intake), the medical college of Meenakshi Academy of Higher Education and Research in Kancheepuram (117, 47%), Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute in Puducherry, a constituent of Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth (92, 37%), and Sree Balaji Medical College in Chromepet (82, 33%). The paper reports that 11 lakh candidates cleared the qualifying cut-off but the seats stayed empty because fees were out of reach; Wilson called the institutions “fee-hungry” and urged the Union ministry to cap fees at deemed universities.

What the MP wants, and who decides

The letter asks the Centre to reduce the qualifying percentile for 2026-27 only, across all categories, enough to fill the vacant seats and strictly in order of NEET rank, and to hold a special stray vacancy round for all 4,068 seats on an extended schedule. “Seats would continue to be allotted strictly in order of NEET rank; no candidate already admitted would be displaced, and the relaxation would operate only to fill seats that would otherwise lapse,” he wrote. He points to earlier 10-percentile-point cuts (NEET-PG 2023, NEET-Super Speciality 2026, NEET-MDS 2026) and notes the Information Bulletin empowers the Centre, with the National Medical Commission, to lower the minimum qualifying marks for such a year. The Supreme Court has dismissed a petition by students seeking the relief, according to The New Indian Express, so the call now rests with the Centre. “The scale of vacancy this year is therefore without precedent,” Wilson wrote. Candidates should watch the official MCC portal and keep paperwork ready. Our admission documents checklist covers what a reporting candidate needs.

Frequently asked questions

Why are so many medical seats vacant this year?

The highest-ever qualifying cut-off meant fewer candidates qualified even as seats grew. Steep deemed-university fees also left 824 seats empty in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Can the NEET-UG 2026 qualifying percentile actually be reduced?

The letter cites the NEET-UG 2026 Information Bulletin, which lets the Centre lower the qualifying marks with the National Medical Commission, and points to earlier cuts for NEET-PG 2023, NEET-Super Speciality 2026 and NEET-MDS 2026. The decision rests with the Centre.

Frequently asked questions

Sources: The New Indian Express, The Times of India, Education Post