The National Eligibility cum Entry Exam (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, has sparked widespread protests and allegations of cheating in India this year due to an unusually high number of candidates scoring top marks.
Administered by the National Testing Agency (NTA), NEET-UG determines admission to medical colleges across the country. While millions of students typically sit for NEET-Entry Exam this year saw an unexpected surge in perfect scores, with 67 students achieving a perfect 720 marks out of over 2.4 million candidates competing for 100,000 spots.
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This surge has disrupted the ranking system and raised suspicions of unfairness, exacerbated by arrests related to alleged paper leaks and cheating scandals.
Critics point to discrepancies such as the awarding of grace marks and accusations of paper leaks. The NTA defended the scores by attributing them to a larger candidate pool and the provision of grace marks for exam-related issues.
Since the June 4 announcement of results, there has been intense scrutiny and calls for a re-examination from students and parents, who have filed petitions seeking justice.
Amidst these concerns, the Indian government cancelled the National Eligibility Test (NET) for research fellowships due to reported question leaks on the darknet. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan acknowledged the leaks and promised a reform committee to address the issues, emphasizing transparency and student welfare.
Despite the Supreme Court’s intervention, cancelling grace marks and ordering a re-test for some students, protests continue over the broader systemic issues in India’s examination system, including corruption and integrity concerns.
