Tier 1 — Elite NITs (Closing Rank Below 21,818)
These elite NITs — National Institute of Technology, Warangal, NIT Calicut, and National Institute of Technology, Rourkela — offer Basic Sciences & Economics (Gender-Neutral) accessible only to candidates with JEE Main Category Ranks at or below 21,818. Competition here is among the most intense in Indian engineering admissions. National Institute of Technology, Warangal and National Institute of Technology, Rourkela are showing tightening competition year-over-year — meaning these seats are becoming progressively harder to secure.