NEW DELHI: An expert committee constituted to look into modalities of the proposed single entrance test for admission to all MBBS courses across India has recommended that there should be no negative marking in the exam. 

The committee set by the Medical Council of India (MCI) has also recommended that there should be objective type questions and a percentile score to determine the merit of all applicants in the proposed National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to MBBS courses from the next year. 

The recommendations have been submitted to the MCI and its Board of Governors will soon take a final call after consulting officials of the Health Ministry. If the expert panel's suggestion is accepted, it will be for the first time that the medical entrance test will not have such a system. 

Sources said that the suggestion of not having negative marking was rooted in concerns of low scores by applicants in the entrance exam, leading to MBBS seats going vacant. In this context, the medical council is also working on the possibility of lowering the cut-offs for MBBS admissions.