We've all heard the age-old saying, "where there's a will, there's a way," and it's not uncommon to come across individuals who exemplify this adage. In a truly inspiring story of determination and ambition, Rayala Satish Babu, a 49-year-old from Telangana, recently appeared for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) UG 2023 alongside his 17-year-old daughter. The National Testing Agency (NTA) had removed the upper age limit criteria for the medical entrance exam last year, giving Babu a chance to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a doctor.

Babu's journey towards becoming a doctor had taken a detour towards engineering, but he never gave up on his dream. He completed his Bachelor of Technology (BTech) in 1997 and has been running a competitive exam coaching centre as its director. With the National Medical Commission lifting the age limit to the NEET, Babu had a newfound opportunity to make his dream a reality. He needed to pass the intermediate exam with subjects such as zoology and botany to be eligible to appear for the NEET. Babu received special permission from the Telangana board and appeared for the intermediate examinations alongside his daughter, after which they both appeared for the NEET 2023 at different centres in their town.

Babu expressed confidence in passing both the exams and fulfilling his lifelong dream of becoming an MBBS doctor. He plans to serve the poor by establishing his own hospital, and his determination and passion serve as an inspiration for anyone who believes that it's never too late to pursue their dreams. The NEET UG 2023 was administered by the NTA on May 7 in the traditional pen and paper-based mode in 13 languages across the country. According to students, the overall difficulty level for the NEET UG this year ranged from easy to moderate, with botany rated as the easiest subject, followed by zoology in order of difficulty. The difficulty level for physics was also classified as easy to moderate.