NEET UG 2026 Counselling: Medical colleges move SC seeking low qualifying percentile to fill vacant MBBS seats

Two medical colleges have approached the Supreme Court seeking a reduction in the qualifying percentile for National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET UG) 2026, citing a rise in vacant medical seats across the country. The petitioners have urged competent authority to exercise its powers under existing NEET UG 2026 information bulletin provisions to lower the qualifying requirement and facilitate the filling of unoccupied seats.

The petition has been filed by Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute and Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute against the Union of India, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) and National Medical Commission (NMC). The matter came up before an SC bench comprising Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe on November 5, 2026.

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According to the apex court's order, senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioners, referred to Clause II(b) of the qualifying criteria under chapter 8 of the NEET UG 2026 bulletin. He submitted that a large number of seats remained unfilled and, therefore, the competent authority should exercise its powers and discretion under the provision to reduce the required percentile.

The court has not yet ordered any reduction in the NEET UG qualifying percentile. SC has issued a notice and the matter is listed for hearing on November 16, when the respondents are expected to respond to the notice.

NEET UG 2026: Medical colleges cite vacant MBBS seats

The petition comes amid a significant number of vacant MBBS seats during the 2026 admission cycle, with high tuition fees at private and deemed medical universities emerging as a major concern.

Medical Counselling Committee data highlights that 3,426 MBBS seats remained vacant after third round of All India counselling this year, compared with 802 seats at the corresponding stage last year. Even after the stray vacancy round, 837 MBBS seats remained unfilled across the country.

In its special stray vacancy round provisional allotment list, MCC recorded 537 MBBS allotment entries against 946 reported vacancies. The provisional list also included 208 BDS and 66 BSc Nursing allotment entries, taking the total number of allotment entries across the three courses to 811.

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The continuing vacancies have raised questions about the affordability of medical education, particularly at private and deemed universities.

MBBS colleges offer concessions amid vacant seats

Several private medical colleges, particularly deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and private institutions in Rajasthan, have reportedly offered fee concessions to attract students during the later stages of NEET UG 2026 counselling.

In one instance, an aspirant secured a 40% reduction in the annual MBBS tuition fee at a deemed university in Tamil Nadu, bringing it down from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 15 lakh. With hostel and other expenses included, the total cost of the four-and-a-half-year course was expected to remain below Rs 80 lakh, compared with the original course fee of over Rs 1 crore. In another case, a student received a Rs 4.5 lakh concession on a course fee of Rs 94.5 lakh at a self-financed medical college in Rajasthan.

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A separate report also highlighted that 824 of the 837 MBBS seats remaining vacant after the final counselling round were in deemed universities in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. Educationists and industry experts attributed the vacancies largely to high tuition fees, with annual MBBS fees at some deemed universities in the two regions ranging from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 35 lakh.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra NEET UG 2026 counselling data highlights a similar issue of vacant medical seats amid concerns over high fees and restrictions on institutional-level admissions. According to the Maharashtra State CET Cell, 138 MBBS and BDS seats remained vacant after six rounds of centralised counselling, including three CAP and three stray vacancy rounds. Of these, 84 were MBBS seats and 54 were BDS seats. 

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The state government discontinued institution-level counselling this year and mandated that all admissions be conducted through the CET Cell following complaints of admission denial and excessive fee demands during college-level rounds in previous years. The Bombay High Court also rejected a private medical college's plea to conduct its own counselling, calling it premature, while allowing the college to approach the Supreme Court if seats remained vacant after the centralised process.

Meanwhile, NMC approved 13,636 additional undergraduate medical seats in 2026, over the existing capacity of approximately 1.27 lakh seats. The expansion has increased the number of available MBBS seats. However, the affordability of private medical education continues to remain a concern for many aspirants.