3 min readDelhiUpdated: Jun 21, 2026 08:16 PM IST
With RE-NEET 2026 now concluded, early feedback from students and faculty points to a paper that leaned more demanding than the original May session, even as it stayed broadly anchored to the NCERT curriculum. The overall difficulty has been rated anywhere from moderate to moderate-difficult, with most of that added pressure traced back to one section in particular: Physics.
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Biology remained the most reliable, high-scoring zone of the paper, staying close to core NCERT content with the heaviest weightage falling in Genetics, Physiology, Reproduction, and Ecology. A few Zoology questions did draw some debate, with multiple options appearing valid to test-takers. Chemistry came in noticeably tougher than the May paper Physical Chemistry leaned on long, multi-step calculations, while Organic Chemistry demanded real command over reaction mechanisms rather than simple recall. Physics, meanwhile, was widely flagged as the toughest and lengthiest section overall, drawing heavily on Mechanics, Electrodynamics, Modern Physics, and Thermodynamics, with application-driven numerical questions creating real time pressure through the section.
Student exits broadly mirrored this pattern: Biology was described as a smooth, fast-scoring section, while Physics was repeatedly called out as the biggest time-sink of the paper. Several students also noted that the difficulty and calculation load felt close to the mock tests they’d practiced with, which took some of the edge off exam-day unfamiliarity.
Reactions from coaching institutes reflect this same split. Ujjwal Singh, Founding CEO of Infinity Learn by Sri Chaitanya, called it “a fairly moderate paper, largely aligned with NCERT,” noting that students who stayed strong on fundamentals would have found ample opportunity to perform well, while Nabin Kaarki, National Academic Director – Medical at Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL), took a sharper view, saying the exam “re-established that top-tier ranks belong strictly to analytical conceptual clarity,” with rote learning carrying students through Biology but sustained problem-solving stamina in Physics and Chemistry ultimately deciding the competitive threshold.
On cutoffs, the two institutes diverge. One outlook places RE-NEET 2026 as relatively more accessible than NEET 2025 but slightly tougher than the original May 2026 paper, expecting the cutoff to land somewhere between the two. The other, weighing the heavier calculation load in Physics and Chemistry along with pockets of ambiguity in Biology, expects a sharper downward correction — projecting the All India Quota (AIQ) General Category cutoff for government seats to settle around 590–600 marks.
How was the original NEET paper held in May?
The original NEET 2026 paper in May was rated overall moderate — Physics and Chemistry called for conceptual clarity and calculation accuracy, Zoology was straightforward and scoring, and Botany, while easy, ran long enough to test time management. That paper was seen as rewarding discipline and consistency over raw difficulty, with students who’d stayed close to NCERT fundamentals and managed their time well coming out ahead.
Key takeaway: Across both the May and June papers, the throughline has been the same — strong NCERT fundamentals, consistent practice, and good time management mattered more than last-minute cramming. Where opinions differ is on just how much harder RE-NEET 2026 was and what that means for cutoffs, with estimates ranging from a modest dip to a more pronounced correction.