![JMA – Ninja & Deep Jandu [Official MV] Kaptaan](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-dsfIh319s0/maxresdefault.jpg "JMA – Ninja & Deep Jandu [Official MV] Kaptaan")
Chennai: The cut-off for MBBS/BDS admissions in Tamil Nadu is likely to increase by nearly 20 marks for the open category and up to 40 marks for some reserved categories this year, as the number of top scorers in NEET-2023 has increased compared to NEET-2022. Experts say, with the increase in high scores at the top, admissions are likely to be tougher and more competitive.
Twenty-nine students from the state scored above 700 out of 720 marks in NEET 2023 according to MBBS/BDS rank list released on Sunday by health minister Ma Subramanian, compared to five in 2022 and nine in 2021. There were 379 students with scores above 650 compared to 199 in 2022. As many as 6,449 students scored 500 or more marks in NEET-2023.
This is one the best performances by TN students in NEET, Subramanian said, congratulating toppers. While J Prabanjan, who grabbed the All India Rank 1 with a perfect score of 720 tops the state list, Surya Siddharth with 715 marks was ranked second in Tamil Nadu followed by Varun S, who also scored 715.
The improvement was sharper in the rank list for the 7.5per cent quota for students who passed out of government schools. Kiruthika C K from Government Girls HSS in Salem topped with 569 marks, a steep jump from 518 marks scored by the topper in 2022. She was followed by Pachiappan S from Dharmapuri with 565 marks and Murugan E from the Government Adi Dravida Welfare School in Moulvakkam with 560 marks. There were 1,170 students with scores above 300 this year compared to 250 students in 2022.
“The cut-off for the open category is likely to be above 600 for government medical colleges, which is at least 20 marks more than the 2022 cut-off. In the BC category, it is likely to increase by up to 25 marks,” said Manickavel Arumugam, a counsellor.
At the national level too, the performance of Tamil Nadu students has improved, Subramanian said. This means more students from Tamil Nadu will get admission to central universities. “We have at least four students among the all-India top 10 list,” he said.
This, student counsellors say, will be the best opportunity for students to explore opportunities in central institutions such as AIIMS-Delhi, JIPMER or Armed Forces Medical Colleges. And if they don’t wish to move out of Tamil Nadu, they should opt for seats through the all-India quota.
