Wished to study Arts and do UPSC": Rajasthan boy Mahesh Kumar comes out topper in NEET 2025

"I wished to study school final year Arts subjects and wanted to do UPSC. But my life has changed now after I took biology as advised by my sister," said Mahesh Kumar (18), from Rajasthan's Hanumangarh district, who topped the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) this year.

Mahesh, a student of a prominent coaching academy in Sikar, secured the first rank in the test with 99.99% on Saturday. "It was my first attempt. I started preparing for the test in 2022 but was too young to attempt it. Though I had expected something nice, never did I imagine myself topping the nation," Mahesh responded.

Mahesh would study 6 to 7 hours daily. "I would study 6 to 7 hours daily. I also cut it short to 4 to 5 hours a month before the exam so that I was tension-free."

Mahesh's parents are government school teachers. "They never put any pressure on me. A week earlier, my mother also visited Sikar and started living with me. I had some problem with Biology in the early days of my coaching. But I improved gradually. Questions were spontaneous this year too. I never imagined that I would be able to top," told Mahesh in a grand-celebration of his coaching academy in Sikar.

Apart from Mahesh, a maximum of three other Rajasthan students - Tany, Soumya Sharma, and Manavendra Rajpurohit also made it to the top 15, as per the NTA website.