TESTING TIMES

As the NEET fiasco turns into a political liability, the Union government has asked the CBI to step in. It is also talking about reforming the National Testing Agency

- MOHIT SHARMA

Akshita Tripathi, 19, wants to study at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences and become a doctor. After scoring 96.6 per cent in class 12, she spent a year to prepare for the National Eligibility-cum Entrance Test (NEET) for undergraduates, and scored 615 marks. She has decided to study harder and appear for the examination once again to improve her score. However, the controversy surrounding the exam has dented her confidence.

Arushi Bisaria wants to pursue PhD in archaeology. She had appeared for the UGC-NET June 2024 exam, which was cancelled based on inputs from the National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit questioning the integrity of the examination. “The problem is that PhD admissions take place in July-August. With exams cancelled, we really do not know whether we would be able to get admission in this session. We may end up losing a year,” said Arushi.

There are many more like Akshita and Arushi who have been busy chasing their dreams when all of a sudden they find themselves grappling with doubts as the reputation of the National Testing Agency (NTA) lies in tatters. With the NEET mess, the cancellation of the UGC-NET exam and the postponement of CSIR-NET and NEET-PG exams, the country’s premier examination agency has been lurching from one controversy to the next, jeopardising the future of three million students.

As soon as the NEET-UG results were announced on June 4, allegations of inflated marking and paper leaks poured in. Sixty-seven candidates secured a perfect 720/720, while many others got marks in the 718-719 range. The number of candidates who scored full marks were two, one and three, the previous three years. The NTA, which first remained in denial, later conceded that grace marks to 1,563 candidates may have resulted in inflated scores.