Amid empty seats, govt slashes dental PG cut-off

NEW DELHI: For the second consecutive year, govt has sharply lowered the qualifying cut-off for postgraduate dental admissions, against the backdrop of vacant seats in Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) programme. The qualifying percentile for NEET-MDS 2026 has been reduced by 20.576 points across categories, following a reduction of 19.863 points in 2025.A senior Union health ministry official estimated that around 1,200 MDS seats remained vacant nationwide. The official said state-wise vacancy figures were not available and explained that the estimate was based on division of seats between All India quota, which accounts for 50%, and state counselling, which covers the remaining 50%.Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has listed 460 clear vacancies and 762 virtual vacancies for Round 2 of MDS counselling this year. The seats are spread across govt and private institutions, which together account for 7,716 seats in 287 colleges.