The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Thursday informed a Parliamentary Standing Committee that the alleged NEET UG 2026 paper leak did not originate through the internal system, even as Opposition MPs questioned the "intelligence failure", demanded accountability from senior officials and pushed for sweeping reforms in the country's central examination body.
The remarks were made during a meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, headed by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, where NTA Director General Abhishek Singh and NTA Chairman Pradeep Kumar Joshi appeared before members to brief them on the cancellation of NEET UG 2026, the ongoing investigation and the implementation of reforms recommended after the NEET UG 2024 controversy.
What NTA Told the Parliamentary Panel
During the meeting, the NTA made a detailed presentation titled "Implementation of Dr K. Radhakrishnan Committee Report in NTA Reforms" and "Update on Investigation into NEET UG Paper Leak 2026".
In its presentation, the NTA traced the background of the agency's creation, stating that India earlier lacked a specialised institution to conduct large-scale entrance examinations and that several policy bodies, including the National Knowledge Commission and the Ashok Mishra Committee on JEE reforms, had recommended an independent testing body.
The NTA informed the panel that since its inception, it has conducted more than 270 examinations involving over 6.6 crore candidates. These include major examinations such as JEE Main, NEET UG, UGC-NET and CUET for undergraduate and postgraduate admissions.
Major Reforms Proposed for Entrance Exams
The NTA also outlined its future roadmap before the panel, including a gradual transition from pen-and-paper tests to computer-based examinations, introduction of multi-session and multi-stage testing, cloud-based infrastructure, integration of artificial intelligence and blockchain technologies, and development of in-house examination software to reduce dependence on external agencies.
Among other long-term proposals are harmonisation and unification of entrance examinations, creation of an NTA public test platform, limits on the number of attempts and age restrictions for candidates, measures that will be implemented in consultation with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
NEET UG 2026 Timeline And Cancellation
On NEET UG 2026, the NTA told the panel that the examination was conducted on May 3 at 5,432 centres across 565 cities, including 14 abroad, in 13 languages. More than 22.7 lakh candidates had registered, while over 22.05 lakh appeared for the examination.
According to the agency, over 99.5 per cent of examination centres were government institutions. It also said city coordinators were either principals of Kendriya Vidyalayas or government schools, while District Level Coordination Committees headed by district collectors conducted centre audits.
The NTA told the panel that on the late evening of May 7, four days after the examination, it received inputs regarding alleged malpractice linked to the test. These inputs were forwarded to central agencies on the morning of May 8 for "independent verification and necessary action".
The agency said that based on inputs examined in coordination with central agencies and findings shared by law-enforcement authorities, a decision was later taken to cancel the examination and conduct a re-test on June 21.
The matter was subsequently referred to the CBI for a comprehensive investigation.
Security Measures Introduced After NEET 2024 Row
The NTA told the panel that following the NEET UG 2024 controversy, the Centre constituted a High-Level Committee of Experts under former ISRO chief K. Radhakrishnan on June 22, 2024, to recommend reforms in examination processes, data security and the structure and functioning of the NTA.
The committee submitted its report, titled "Reformation of National Common Entrance Testing", on October 21, 2024, recommending short-term, medium-term and long-term reforms.
According to the NTA presentation, nearly 70 per cent of the short-term measures suggested by the Radhakrishnan Committee have already been implemented.
The reforms include the creation of State Level Coordination Committees and District Level Coordination Committees to improve coordination with local administrations. The measure also include strengthening the NTA with new director and joint director-level posts.
The NTA said rigorous training of examination personnel and standard operating procedures had also been implemented.
It added that review meetings chaired by the Union Home Secretary with chief secretaries and police chiefs had been institutionalised to strengthen coordination between the NTA, states and law-enforcement agencies.
The agency further informed the panel that Aadhaar-based biometric authentication had been introduced for NEET UG candidates under the proposed "DIGI-EXAM" system to ensure only genuine candidates appear for examinations.
It also highlighted enhanced frisking protocols, with state police carrying out the first layer of checks and NTA personnel conducting a second round at examination centres.
The NTA presentation stated that CCTV cameras had been installed in all examination rooms across 5,432 centres and that feeds were centrally monitored and analysed using artificial intelligence tools to detect suspicious activity.
Mobile jammers were also installed at all examination centres with the help of Bharat Electronics Limited and Electronics Corporation of India Limited, while 34 parallel control rooms were set up in higher educational institutions across states in addition to control rooms in the Education Ministry and the NTA.
The agency said data analytics systems had been introduced to detect suspicious patterns, malpractice indicators and anomalies in candidate responses after examinations.
The NTA also informed the committee that there remains a staff vacancy of nearly 25 per cent in the organisation, though the process to fill these posts is underway.
Supreme Court Observation on NEET 2024 Case
Referring to the NEET UG 2024 controversy, the NTA presentation noted that after allegations of irregularities and malpractice surfaced, the Ministry of Education had referred the matter to the CBI for a comprehensive investigation into conspiracy, cheating and breach of trust allegations.
The NTA also referred to the Supreme Court's August 2, 2024 judgment, which observed that there was no material at the time indicating a "systemic leak or systemic malpractice" in the examination process.