Recently the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for Undergraduates (NEET-UG) 2024 was in the eye of controversy when the National Testing Agency ( NTA) rejected the paper leak strongly. In an affidavit filed with the Supreme Court on a more recent date, the NTA came out to state that the video circulating over the internet of alleged leaked exam papers is ‘fake’ and ‘fabricated.’
This year, NEET-UG, barely twenty-four lakh students appeared, and they have been on the firing line since the results were declared on June 4 instead of June 14. It has been considered highly sensitive, with allegations of leakage of the questions and ‘grace marks’ being given to 1,563 students.
While responding to the allegation of leakage in Bihar, the NTA informed the apex court that no question papers were lost and no lock of examination centers was found to be breached. The agency also clarified that each question paper contains serial numbers corresponding to a candidate and that no commission of malpractice was seen during operations recorded in CCTV from command centers.
Nevertheless, cases have not been discouraged. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested eight persons in Bihar over an alleged paper leak, which shows that active investigation is carried out in Bihar in cases related to unfair means.
The Centre has remained defiant in its stand not to award a retest, arguing crisply that the detailed scrutiny of the outcome showed them to contain no hint of large-scale cheating or localized advantage. The government has laid down the following schedule for the admissions: Counseling will begin in the third week of July in four phases.
The degree of this concern has been compounded by several factors: A record number of students scoring full marks-67 students scored 720, and more than 1500 students received special ‘grace marks.’ These students were to be given a retest, and while several attempted this, many did not show up, creating more problems.
As the controversy continues, the cancellation of the UGC-NET and the NEET-PG exams has contributed to the growing concern regarding the credibility of high-stakes educational examinations in India.
Thus, the NTA and the government continue to be faced with the responsibility of rebuilding the confidence of the public in examinations as well as ensuring equal opportunities for qualified aspiring medical students across the nation.
