Experts flag need to review and structurally reform the NTA

With the cancellation of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)-Under Graduate (UG) 2026 examination, the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts this entrance exam, has yet again come under the scanner for its alleged lax operational capacity, porous cybersecurity, and poor crisis communication, according to experts. 

Also read | NEET-UG 2026 cancelled LIVE: Process to hold re-exam to begin in 7-10 days: NTA DG Abhishek Singh

Since its introduction in 2013, the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is now for the first time facing a full-scale cancellation and retest, though it has had a rocky run with a limited retest in 2024 for 1,563 candidates who had received grace marks due to loss of exam time at certain centres, and allegations every year from various States on impersonation; candidates and coaching institutes paying large sums to obtain leaked question papers and answer keys before the test; photos of papers taken and circulated with gangs distributing prepared answers for students to quickly memorise before the exam began; suspiciously high scores and inflation in ranking; and ‘organised cheating centres’.

The NEET is a nationwide entrance exam for admission to over 10 undergraduate medical courses in India. It is one of the world’s largest entrance exams with 20-24 lakh candidates taking it annually for over 2.5 lakh seats across all courses that use NEET scores.

In 2013, NEET-UG was conducted for the first time. In 2014-2015, admissions to medical courses temporarily went back to separate State and private medical entrance exams, but a year later the Supreme Court revived NEET and the exam is now conducted by the NTA, which took over from the Central Board of Secondary Education in 2019.

Speaking of several risks in the NEET-UG exam system Rajeev Jayadevan, former president of the Indian Medical Association (Kochi) explained that NEET-UG exam centres are spread across numerous sites in India and abroad.

“While anti-cheating security measures at examination centres are keeping up with the times, the old school mode of pen-and-paper examination itself appears to be the weak link in the chain. The question paper has to be physically printed, distributed, stored, and transported to individual centres — each is a point of vulnerability where a leak can occur. Even a single photograph of the question paper is sufficient to breach the system. Given the high demand and potential for illegal monetary gains, such leaks will likely occur again unless the system is changed,’’ Dr. Jayadevan said.

With numerous other examinations already in the digital format, it’s time to upgrade the NEET-UG system to a computer-based platform so that the number of potential points of breached security are far fewer, and the distribution is encrypted, Dr. Jayadevan added. Students of the present generation are far more digitally literate than those of the past, and a transition to a digital format should not be difficult, he said, with other experts also calling for stronger digital security, decentralisation of admissions, allowing multiple attempts per year, and a hybrid tally, which includes aptitude and school scores.

Merely cancelling the exam cannot be the final solution to such a massive scam, Lakshya Mittal, chairperson, United Doctors Front, said. “This is not the first time that serious allegations and irregularities have surfaced regarding NEET examinations. Repeated incidents over the years clearly indicate the existence of a deep-rooted nexus and systemic failure which cannot be ignored any longer,” Dr. Mittal said.

Doctors and healthcare experts are now demanding a high-level, time-bound, and transparent investigation into the entire matter. Previously, following the controversy around the 2024 NEET-UG paper leak and irregularities, the Central government and NTA introduced a series of reforms, including the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 which criminalises paper leaks, cheating syndicates, impersonation, and organised exam fraud; the creation of a high-level reform committee to review the functioning of the NTA and recommend structural reforms; and a proposed shift to digital/hybrid exams and enhanced cybersecurity measures.