More than 100,000 aspirants across Bihar on Sunday appeared in the much-anticipated National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Under Graduates (NEET-UG) which was conducted amid tightened security arrangements, and it passed off peacefully in the entire state, state officials and the officials from the national testing agency (NTA) said.Security personnel check aspirants appearing in the NEET examination at the Magadh Mahila College in Patna on Sunday. (Santosh Kumar/HT)Almost 46,029 candidates appeared in Patna for the largest share of examinees, with 95 centres in the capital. Bapu Pariksha Parisar at Kumhrar was the main examination centre where more than 7,500 candidates were expected to appear for the examination. As per figure, 156,061 candidates were registered for appearing in the state with 46,000 candidates in Patna while 331 centres were made in 35 cities in the state. Of these, 81,165 are male candidates and 74,896 are female candidates. Candidates entered the examination halls by 1.30pm and biometric attendances were functioning properly. The examination started at 2pm and ended 5.15pm as 15 minutes were given as additional provision.Patna DM Kundan Kumar said that we made the best possible arrangements for the exam. Heavy deployment of security personnel and installation of surveillance equipment were made to ensure the smooth conduct of the examination, he added.Candidates at Bapu Pariksha campus described that the examination paper was “moderate to tough”. “The physics paper was lengthy, a little bit tougher than the last time. It was my first attempt and I hoped that I would secure more than 500 marks. However, the examination was conducted very peacefully,” said a girl candidate who came to Patna from Bettiah.DSP-1, Patna City, Rajkishore, said, “Thousands of candidates appeared at the Bapu Pariksha Parisar which made tight security arrangements. We also made a one way route for smooth movement of vehicles. The examination was conducted peacefully,” he added.Officials who inspected the examination centre said that security arrangements were strengthened across the state to prevent any irregularities and ensure a fair examination process. “The examination ended peacefully without any disturbance or untoward incidents. We visited the examination centres to inspect the arrangements. Around 95 examination centres were made in Patna. So far, we have not received any complaints and we have strengthened all examination venues,” he added.On the other hand, jammers were also functioning during the examination and section 163 of the BNSS was enforced in the radius of 200 metres from the examination centres. District administration remained on high alert for the examination as the senior administrative officials instructed all coaching institutes to remain closed on the examination day. The sub-divisional officers and sub-divisional police officers were closely monitoring coaching centres and taking immediate action if they found any suspicious.East central railway operated six special trains for candidates. The Bihar state board of religious trusts arranged drinking water, sattu and soaked gram and jaggery for candidates and their parents.In Sitamarhi district, an inmate lodged in jail, arrived at the examination centres in handcuffs to appear in the exam. DSP Rajeev Kumar said that the inmate lodged in jail was brought to the examination centre to appear in the exam. “He is in judicial custody in connection with an assault case,” he added. The DSP said that he was brought from the prison to the exam centre in compliance with a court order.On June 16, the question papers for the re-examination were brought to Patna by a special Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft. Later, the papers were transferred to designated centres under tight security arrangements.On Saturday, the concerned authorities conducted mock drills at examination centres throughout the state to test security and arrangements. The exercises included trial runs for candidate entry procedures, examination material distribution and emergency response systems.The re-examination was conducted after the earlier NEET-UG examination, after allegations of a paper leak and authorities ordered a fresh test for candidates. The last NEET examination was conducted on May 3 and it was cancelled over allegations of paper leak.In Darbhanga district, the re-examination was conducted peacefully and without any reported malpractice at 16 centres in the Darbhanga Municipal Corporation area. District magistrate Kaushal Kumar inspected several examination centres, including Zila School and Darbhanga Engineering College, and reviewed arrangements made for the test conducted by the NTA.Officials said that elaborate security arrangements, including four-tier magistrate deployment and adequate police presence, were put in place to ensure fair and transparent conduct of the examination. The district administration also monitored arrangements related to candidates’ entry, identity verification, seating, drinking water and sanitation facilities.“Maintaining the sanctity and transparency of the examination remains the administration’s top priority,” Kumar said.To facilitate candidates, the administration deployed 10 pink buses on selected routes to provide free transportation to examination centres. However, most candidates preferred to use personal vehicles or public transport.(with inputs from Bishnu K Jha and agencies)