Aftab Iqbal tops from J&K with all-India rank 423

Srinagar, Jun 14: Aftab Iqbal emerged to be the NEET UG-2025 Jammu and Kashmir topper, securing an all-India rank of 423.

He scored 99.9808085 percentile.

The UG-NEET topper for 2025, Aftab Iqbal from Ramban today said that it was genetics that got him interested in pursuing a medical career, prompting him to prepare for NEET for two years.

Rest, as they say, is history.

He scored an all-India rank of 423 with 622 marks.

Iqbal said he studied extensively from NCERT textbooks for Class 12 and below.

He said consistency was the key to success.

ìMock tests increase confidence while NCERT books and the concepts therein are crucial for preparing,î he said thanking his coaching institute for training him well.

Iqbal hails from Ramban and said the result came as a surprise to him.

ìThis result came as a shock to me. I did not expect to score so well in the exam,î he said.

Iqbal did not expect to be among the All-India top 500 ranks, let alone be a J&K topper.

ìWhen I saw my rank 423, I thanked the Almighty,î he said.

He had calculated his marks to be 618 from the answer key but did not count one question for which the answer had been changed later.

ìI finally scored 622 marks,î the visibly excited Iqbal said.

He aspired to become a doctor when he studied biology in Classes 9th and 10th.

ìI was enthralled when I started understanding life science, especially genetics. Thatís when I thought, "I have to be a doctor,î he said. My parents had also dreamt of me becoming a doctor, although they never exerted any pressure of that sort.

Iqbal studied at Aakash Institute in Srinagar for two years.

This was his first attempt at NEET-UG.

His family said it was important for parents to dedicate their time to building the confidence and training their children for careers.

ìParents have to work as hard as children. They have to be by their side,î Iqbalís father told media persons.

Iqbal was a student of Government High School Khadi.

His father credits the teachers of this school for helping his son study for NEET.