Kupwara, Jul 17: Faizan Bashir Bhat from Gushi area of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district has proved that with perseverance and dedication, even toughest goal can be achieved. On Thursday evening Faizan was busy with household chores when his mobile rang. Soon after he recieved the call from a friend, tears started rolling down his eyes after hearing that he had qualified NEET 2026. Faizan qualified National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) by securing 554 marks.
Faizan completed his class 8th from Iqbal Memorial School Gushi, following which he passed his 10th class from Boys High School Gushi with 475 marks in 2023. He completed his 11th and 12th from Boys Higher Secondary School, Karihama, securing 450 marks in his 12th class last year. Faizan could not afford private coaching because of his family’s financial constraints. He instead prepared for NEET through self-study and by using free educational content available on YouTube.
“I like to study in isolation and most importantly I remained consistent in my preparation with the result I achieved this feat. I spent most of the time on understanding concepts which helped me a lot to gain the knowledge,” Faizan said. Although he qualified NEET with 554 marks, Faizan said he was not satisfied with his rank and had expected a better result. “I studied for nearly 14 hours every day during my preparation. During 11th and 12th classes, I realised that social media was consuming my valuable study time so I uninstalled all social media applications and devoted myself entirely to studies,” Faizan told Greater Kashmir.
He credited his achievement to the support of his parents, especially his mother, besides his paternal uncle, maternal uncle, and cousins who encouraged him throughout his journey of qualifying NEET. Recalling an emotional incident, Faizan said that frequent power cuts during winter often disrupted his preparation. “My uncle a private school teacher, though living separately with his own family, bought an inverter for us so that I could continue studying late into the night. That support made a huge difference in my preparation,” Faizan said. Advising NEET aspirants, Faizan said that dedication, consistency, and perseverance were the keys to success.
“If an aspirant remains committed to his goal and works hard, anything can be achieved,” he said.
BANDIPORA’S AIMAN SHOWKAT QUALIFIES NEET; CREDITS SELF-STUDY, ONLINE LEARNING
Syed Rizwan Geelani reports
Aiman Showkat from Bandipora emerged as one of Jammu and Kashmir’s top performers in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), the result of which was declared by National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday evening. Aiman secured a rank among the top performers of J&K. Aiman said that disciplined self-study, confidence and consistent practice can yield outstanding results. She has scored 622 points in the NEET examination. A resident of Kharpora in Bandipora, Aiman completed her schooling up to Class 10 from AGS Bandipora before pursuing Classes 11 and 12 at Government Higher Secondary School, Bandipora. She prepared for the highly competitive medical entrance examination without joining any full-time coaching institute, instead relied on online resources and subject-specific educators.
Speaking about her preparation, Aiman said she extensively used online platforms, particularly YouTube, to study different subjects. She credited Unacademy for Biology, while learning Physics from individual teachers and for question practice. For Chemistry, she studied Organic Chemistry through Unacademy and prepared Inorganic and Physical Chemistry with another faculty member. She said maintaining consistency was more important than following rigid study-hour targets.
Instead of adhering to claims of studying 16 to 18 hours a day, Aiman said she focused on productive learning, generally studying for seven to eight hours effectively, with a maximum of around 14 hours on some days. Aiman highlighted the changing pattern of the NEET examination and advised aspirants to strengthen conceptual understanding, particularly in Physics and Chemistry, where questions are increasingly application-based rather than formula-driven. “Believe in yourself, work hard and focus on practising previous years’ question banks,” she said. She said that students should not be distracted by negative comments or societal pressure. “I remained anxious until the declaration of the results despite performing well in the examination,” she said. She had hoped to secure a rank among the top five in Jammu and Kashmir and said she was overwhelmed after achieving the feat. The achievement sparked celebrations at her residence, where relatives, neighbours and well-wishers gathered to congratulate her soon after the results were announced.
3 YOUTH QUALIFY NEET IN GANDERBAL
Irfan Raina reports
Three youth from Ganderbal qualified the NEET 2026, bringing pride and joy to their parents, relatives, and the entire district. Adnan Manzoor, a resident of Waskura, Ganderbal, qualified with a score of 647. Muneeb Ul Islam, a resident of Wakura, Ganderbal, qualified with a score of 570. Saifullah Ashiq, a resident of Gund, Kangan, qualified with a score of 549.
