Boy from Raniganj declared joint topper in NEET-UG
The Statesman | 21 August 2025
Kalyan Chattopadhyay, a resident of J K Nagar in Raniganj, West Burdwan district, has been declared joint first in the country in the NEET (UG) examinations following a review of his results.
The results were originally announced in June this year, when Kalyan had secured the 16th position in the all-India ranking. Dissatisfied, he requested a review of his marks, which has now placed him at the very top.
Yesterday, his family confirmed that 18-year-old Kalyan secured 99.9999547 percentile, sharing the top position with Mahesh Kumar of Rajasthan. Earlier, he had scored 686 out of 720 marks, with 99 per cent in physics, chemistry and biology.
His father, Bhairav Chattopadhyay, an employee of the central public sector enterprise Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL), said: “Since childhood he was focused and always stood first in school. There was never a moment when we had to tell him to study. He has always aspired to become a doctor. We are truly proud that he has jointly secured the first position in the country in NEET.”
Kalyan, who completed his Plus Two from a private school in Asansol, has already secured admission to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. His mother, Rinku Chattopadhyay, is a homemaker.
“I am really happy with the new ranking as I was always confident of a better result. I want to become a good doctor and pursue higher studies in neuroscience,” said Kalyan. He advised aspiring candidates to remain focused, study consistently and take as many mock tests as possible ahead of the final examination.
Former Asansol Municipal Corporation mayor, Jitendra Tiwari, visited his residence and congratulated him, saying that his achievement would inspire many MBBS aspirants from the industrial and coalfield belt.
The family has already received confirmation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak with Kalyan virtually on 30 August, followed by President Droupadi Murmu on 31 August, to personally congratulate him on his remarkable success in one of the country’s toughest undergraduate entrance examinations.
The NEET (UG) is conducted nationally by the National Testing Agency (NTA). After securing admission through counselling at AIIMS, New Delhi, Kalyan had applied to the NTA for a review of his result, which has now placed him at the very top.