The National Testing Agency (NTA) declared the NEET UG 2026 results on July 16, 2026, with more than 11.21 lakh candidates qualifying for the country’s largest medical entrance examination. As students across India checked their scorecards, one of the candidates who emerged among the top rankers was Gaurav Singh, who secured All India Rank (AIR) 9 in Re-NEET UG 2026.Soon after the results were announced, Gaurav opened up about the preparation strategy that helped him secure a place among the country’s top medical aspirants. He spoke about his preparation in an interview with ANI.
‘I mainly focussed on consistency and discipline’
Unlike many students who believe long study hours guarantee success, Gaurav said his approach was based on maintaining a steady routine every day.Speaking to ANI, he said, “…While preparing for NEET, I mainly focussed on consistency and discipline.”He explained that he never believed in studying excessively on one particular day. Instead, his focus remained on following the same routine consistently throughout his preparation.“Instead of studying a lot on one day, reading consistently every day, writing papers every day and listening to the teachers and continuous revision—this used to be my strategy…” he told ANI.According to Gaurav, solving question papers regularly and revising concepts repeatedly helped him strengthen his understanding and improve his performance over time.
Cleared NEET in his first attempt after two years of preparation
The AIR 9 holder also revealed that he dedicated two years to preparing for the examination and succeeded in clearing it in his very first attempt. “I prepared for 2 years and cleared NEET in the first attempt,” Gaurav said while speaking to ANI.He stressed that revision should remain a priority throughout the preparation journey. “One must do revision as much as possible and work hard as much as possible,” he said.Gaurav also acknowledged that setbacks are a part of every student’s journey and advised aspirants not to lose confidence when faced with difficulties. “One must be motivated enough that if there are a few setbacks, overcome them, and further improve,” he added.
AIR 9 topper’s message for future NEET aspirants
Sharing a message for students preparing for upcoming NEET examinations, Gaurav once again highlighted the importance of discipline.Giving advice to aspirants, he told ANI, “Discipline is really important. Prepare with discipline, and all topics will be cleared, and numbers will improve…”His message comes as thousands of students begin preparing for next year’s examination, hoping to secure admission to medical colleges across the country.
Over 11.21 lakh candidates qualify NEET UG 2026
The NTA conducted rre-NEET UG 2026 on June 21 at 5,440 examination centres across 551 cities in India and 14 cities abroad. Nearly 20 lakh candidates appeared for the examination, and more than 11.21 lakh qualified for admission to undergraduate medical, dental, AYUSH, and allied courses.This year, Aryan Gupta of Punjab and Panshul Bansal of Haryana jointly topped the examination with 715 marks out of 720. The NTA said 19 candidates scored above 700 marks, while 138 candidates secured more than 690 marks.Following the declaration of results, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) will conduct counselling for the 15 per cent All India Quota seats, while the respective state authorities will oversee counselling for state quota admissions.
