Punjab July 17
A Ludhiana teenager Aryan Gupta has scripted one of the most inspiring success stories of NEET-UG 2026, overcoming heartbreak after the exam was cancelled due to the paper leak controversy to emerge as the joint All India Rank (AIR) 1 holder.
The 17-year-old admitted that he “cried a lot” when the original NEET examination was scrapped, saying months of hard work seemed to vanish overnight. But instead of giving up, Aryan returned to his books the very next day, reminding himself that millions of other aspirants were facing the same setback.
When the re-examination was conducted on June 21, Aryan turned disappointment into determination. His relentless preparation paid off as he scored 715 out of 720 marks, sharing the top national rank with Haryana’s Panshul Bansal in the NEET-UG 2026 results announced by the National Testing Agency (NTA).
Aryan’s journey has become a symbol of resilience for lakhs of medical aspirants affected by this year’s unprecedented cancellation. His message is simple yet powerful: setbacks can delay dreams, but they do not have to end them.
