5 days ago
1
The National Testing Agency (NTA) connected Friday (May 29, 2026) told the Supreme Court that its determination to cancel NEET-UG 2026 and manus implicit the probe into the insubstantial leak to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) reflected the seriousness with which introspection integrity was being treated by the bureau and the Centre.
“The cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 connected May 3 and the transportation of the probe to the CBI is illustrative of the seriousness with which the NTA and the Government of India presumption introspection integrity,” the affidavit stated.
The bureau filed an affidavit successful the apex tribunal implicit the corrective steps taken pursuing NEET-UG insubstantial leak. The affidavit was filed hours up of a proceeding earlier a Bench headed by Justice P.S. Narasimha.
The NTA said the determination to cancel the introspection was taken successful the involvement of students and successful designation of the spot underpinning the nationalist introspection system. It added that the bureau was extending afloat practice to the CBI successful the ongoing investigation.
According to the affidavit, the NTA has overhauled respective aspects of the introspection system, including question insubstantial preparation, printing, proscription and retention protocols.
Among the cardinal changes, the bureau has introduced aggregate sets of question papers, with 1 acceptable retained arsenic a backup. Instead of the accepted A, B, C and D series, the papers volition present transportation peculiar lengthy codes, and the sequencing of reply options varies crossed antithetic sets.
The affidavit said printing protocols person been tightened done verification, monitoring and information arrangements. A designated elder serviceman volition oversee the full printing process, and the usage of physics devices has present been prohibited. All CCTV recordings volition besides beryllium preserved.
The NTA said proscription of question insubstantial trunks is present being carried retired done India Post (a authorities entity), with a chain-of-custody protocols. The papers volition beryllium escorted by Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) from the printing property to nodal hubs. India Post volition past transport the papers to territory custodians, and past District Police volition instrumentality them to introspection centres.
The NTA said it has besides issued elaborate guidelines for receipt and retention of question-paper trunks by custodian banks. The trunks shall beryllium received by the Custodian successful the exam metropolis and kept successful harmless custody, the affidavit said, with entree restricted to authorised personnel. They tin lone beryllium opened successful a designated beardown country oregon power country 45 minutes earlier the commencement of the examination.
The affidavit further stated that Confidential Operations (CONOPs) guidelines person been operationalised. A dedicated country has been carved retired successful the bureau for confidential work, , portion question insubstantial setters volition beryllium isolated successful insulated rooms without net oregon mobile access. The rooms volition beryllium self-contained with retention abstraction and pantry. Any unsmooth enactment generated during the process volition beryllium shredded and question papers are stored successful encrypted mode connected a maestro machine astatine the bid centre. The cryptographic algorithms utilized for question transportation are besides updated regularly.
The NTA informed the tribunal that the re-examination scheduled for June 21 would beryllium conducted nether a strengthened modular operating process (SOP) model incorporating multi-layer authentication, enhanced surveillance and inter-agency coordination.
