Hadiya Nisar secures AIR 99, Zaidan Wani at 124; only 138 candidates across India score 690 marks or above
‘This is for every girl in Kashmir who dreams of becoming a doctor,’ says 19-year-old cardiology aspirant
Srinagar, Jul 17 : Jammu and Kashmir recorded its best-ever performance in the NEET UG 2026 examination, with two students breaking into the top 125 ranks.
Hadiya Nisar, 19, from Srinagar, secured All India Rank (AIR) 99 with 690 marks and a 99.9931 percentile, becoming the highest-ranked candidate from the Union Territory. Zaidan Wani, also from the Valley, secured AIR 124 with the same percentile score, according to the National Testing Agency (NTA), which declared the results.
The two are among only 138 candidates nationwide to score 690 marks or above in the examination, which saw over 11.21 lakh students qualifying for the counselling process, the NTA said.
Officials described the achievement as a “turning point” for medical aspirants from the region, given that J&K had only one candidate in the top 200 in 2024. The upward trend, they said, reflects growing competitiveness among students from the Valley.
“This success should not be seen as an anomaly but as a sign of what is possible if we invest in our students,” a senior official of the School Education Department told The Web Story/The Varmul Post on condition of anonymity.
Hadiya, who aspires to specialise in cardiology, recounted the challenges she faced. “There were days when power cuts disrupted my studies, and I had to rely on mobile data for online classes. But my parents never let me lose hope. This is for every girl in Kashmir who dreams of becoming a doctor,” she said.
Zaidan, who lost his father two years ago, credited his mother for his achievement. “She worked double shifts to support my coaching fees. I told myself I cannot let her sacrifice go waste. I want to tell every student from J&K that our circumstances do not define us — our hard work does,” he said.
Prof. (Dr.) Naseer Ahmad, a senior medical educator from Srinagar, said the results were significant beyond the two students. “It shows that with the right guidance and determination, students from J&K can compete with the best in the country. Over the past decade, coaching centres have mushroomed across Srinagar and Jammu, and digital learning platforms have bridged gaps,” he told The Web Story/The Varmul Post.
Education department officials attributed the improved performance to increased government spending on higher education, the expansion of private coaching institutes in the Valley, and greater awareness among students about career opportunities beyond traditional streams.
However, they acknowledged that challenges persist, including limited access to quality coaching in remote areas, high fees charged by private institutes, and inadequate mock test facilities.
With their ranks, both Hadiya and Zaidan are now in a strong position to secure admission to premier government medical colleges such as AIIMS Delhi, PGIMER Chandigarh, or Maulana Azad Medical College, subject to their preferences and seat availability during counselling.
As celebrations broke out in their neighbourhoods, with families distributing sweets and neighbours gathering to congratulate them, officials said the Valley’s young aspirants were no longer content with merely participating.
“J&K’s young aspirants are no longer content with just participating — they are here to win,” the education department official added.
NEET UG 2026 has, for the first time in recent years, placed Jammu and Kashmir firmly on the national medical education map, officials said.
