NEET UG · Biology · Cell: The Unit of Life
Mitochondria and Plastids: NEET previous year questions
9 questions in ten years of NEET, in 5 of 10 papers. Pattern: Every year. Here is how it is asked and which ideas come back.
- Asked in 10 years
- 9
- about 0.9 per paper
- Years asked
- 5/10
- last asked 2026
- Weighted estimate
- 1.1
- model; history: 0.9 a paper on average, typically 0–2
Key findings
- 01
Asked in 5 of 10 papers, 9 questions in all: #85 of 204 topics by ten-year total. It comes back every 2.2 years on average.
- 02
100% of its questions since 2018 tested an idea never asked before; none repeated an idea from the year before.
- 03
The most repeated idea is Mitochondrial Inner Structure, asked 2 times (2026), usually as “identify composition of a structure”.
- 04
NEET has asked 8 of the 84 ideas in this topic; 62 have never been asked, directly or indirectly.
- 05
Mostly asked as one-line MCQ (67%); 44% easy, 0% hard, and up from 0.6 to 1.6 questions a paper since 2024.
Questions per year
- Up to 2023
- 0.6
- per paper
- Since 2024
- 1.6
- +1.1
- Usual gap
- 2.2 yrs
- between papers asking it
- Swing
- ±1.0
- questions, year to year
Revise first
Mitochondrial Inner Structure (2026); Chromoplast Pigment Composition (2026); Chloroplast DNA Characteristics (2024)
How it is asked
Difficulty, format and skill
Across all 9 questions on Mitochondria and Plastids since 2017.
Difficulty
QUESTIONS- Easy4 · 44%
- Medium5 · 56%
- Hard0 · 0%
Format
SHARE- One-line MCQ · 6 Q67%
- Match the lists · 2 Q22%
- Two statements · 1 Q11%
Skill tested
SHARE- Recall · 8 Q89%
- Concept · 1 Q11%
Repeats
New idea, or one asked before?
Each column is a paper. Blue questions tested an idea NEET had not asked before; navy ones went back to an idea from an earlier paper. 2017 is the first paper, so everything in it counts as new.
- Idea asked for the first time
- Idea asked in an earlier paper
Coverage of the topic
NEET has asked 8 of the 84 ideas in this topic. 62 have never been asked yet.
- Asked directly8 · 10%
- Touched inside another question14 · 17%
- Never asked62 · 74%
Ideas come from Lumi’s syllabus map of NCERT. A never-asked idea is not a safe skip: most new questions come from exactly these.
Drill down
Idea, year, question
Every idea NEET tested in this topic, with its ten papers. Open one to read the questions.
- 2 · 22%2
- 2026 · Q96Mitochondrial inner membrane encloses ________.
easyOne-line MCQNew idea
- 2026 · Q97Match List-I with List-II. List-I | List-II A. Cristae | I. Flat membrane sacs in stroma of chloroplast B. Cisternae | II. Infoldings in…
mediumMatch the listsNew idea
- 2026 · Q96
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
- 1 · 11%
Squares are the ten papers, 2017 to 2026; darker means more questions. Share is of the level above.
Ideas
Every idea inside this topic
8 different ideas were tested; 1 came more than once. Mitochondrial Inner Structure is the foundation for 40 other ideas in the syllabus.
- Mitochondrial Inner Structure2×
identify composition of a structure
Match the lists · 11% next · foundation for 40 - Chromoplast Pigment Composition1×
identify example of a plastid type
One-line MCQ · 6% next - Chloroplast DNA Characteristics1×
identify nature of organelle dna
One-line MCQ · 6% next - Double-Membrane Organelle Grouping1×
statement i/ii on organelle membranes
Two statements · 6% next - Cristae Surface Area Maximization1×
match list on cell structures
Match the lists · 4% next - Mitochondrial Enzyme Compartmentalization1×
incorrect statement selection on mitochondria
One-line MCQ · 4% next · foundation for 1 - Semiautonomous Nature1×
identify organelles lacking a feature
One-line MCQ · 4% next · foundation for 18 - Energy Transformation Role1×
identify organelle by function
One-line MCQ · 4% next · foundation for 4
Chance next is the historical rate at which an idea with this record came back in the following paper. It is low for every idea, which is why learning the topic beats memorising past questions. All repeated ideas
Every question
Mitochondria and Plastids questions, year by year
The opening words of each question as it appeared in the official paper, with the idea it tested.
NEET 20263 questions
- Q96Mitochondrial inner membrane encloses ________.
Idea: Mitochondrial Inner Structure
New ideaEasyOne-line MCQ - Q97Match List-I with List-II. List-I | List-II A. Cristae | I. Flat membrane sacs in stroma of chloroplast B. Cisternae | II. Infoldings in…
Idea: Mitochondrial Inner Structure
New ideaMediumMatch the lists - Q98The plastid that stores xanthophyll is known as ________ .
Idea: Chromoplast Pigment Composition
New ideaMediumOne-line MCQ
NEET 20242 questions
- Q145The DNA present in chloroplast is:
Idea: Chloroplast DNA Characteristics
New ideaEasyOne-line MCQ - Q186Given below are two statements: Statement I: Mitochondria and chloroplasts are both double membrane bound organelles. Statement II: Inner…
Idea: Double-Membrane Organelle Grouping
New ideaMediumTwo statements
NEET 20211 question
- Q133Match List - I with List - II. List - I | List - II (a) Cristae | (i) Primary constriction in chromosome (b) Thylakoids | (ii) Disc-shaped…
Idea: Cristae Surface Area Maximization
New ideaEasyMatch the lists
NEET 20192 questions
- Q119Which of the following pair of organelles does not contain DNA ?
Idea: Semiautonomous Nature
New ideaMediumOne-line MCQ - Q133Which of the following statements regarding mitochondria is incorrect ?
Idea: Mitochondrial Enzyme Compartmentalization
New ideaMediumOne-line MCQ
NEET 20171 question
- Q114Which of the following cell organelles is responsible for extracting energy from carbohydrates to form ATP ?
Idea: Energy Transformation Role
EasyOne-line MCQ
Questions from the official NEET UG papers published by NTA (CBSE before 2019). Topic and idea tags, counts and notes are Lumi’s.