Under fire for the irregularities in NEET and the cancellation of the UGC-NET exam, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has said that a high-level committee will be formed and that the interest of the students is the first priority of the government.
Over 30 lakh candidates appeared for the exams, both of which were conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), and the minister’s comments came on a day when students held protests in various parts of the country, including outside Mr Pradhan’s home in Delhi. Some were also detained.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Mr Pradhan said in Hindi, “I want to assure everyone that the government is committed to ensuring the interests of students. We will not compromise with that or with transparency. As far as the NEET exams are concerned, we are in constant touch with the Bihar government and the Patna Police will send us a detailed report soon. As per preliminary information, errors are limited to certain regions.”
The Bihar reference was to reports of NEET papers being leaked there.
“I want to assure you that, once we get concrete evidence, none of the guilty will be spared, whether it is the NTA or some senior NTA official. Our priority is the future of students. The government is also setting up a high-level committee. It will give recommendations on improving NTA’s structure, its functioning, examination process, transparency and data, and security protocol. We are committed to zero-error exams,” the minister said.
The committee, he said, will consist of technocrats, scientists, education administrators, academicians and scientists.
Pointing out that the government had brought in a law to prevent the use of unfair means in public examinations, the minister made an appeal to not spread rumours on such issues or politicise them.
“Lakhs of students, many of them meritorious candidates who are poor or from rural areas, have got good marks and good ranks. Their career should not be held hostage because of isolated incidents. We are ready to make all needed improvements. None of the guilty will be spared,” Mr Pradhan asserted.
On the UGC-NET exam – which is held for Assistant Professor posts in universities and colleges and to determine eligibility for junior research fellowships – Mr Pradhan said when the UGC chairman received information from the cyber crime team in the home ministry about questions being on the darknet, tallying was done with the original paper and an immediate decision was taken to hold a CBI investigation. It was also decided to cancel the exam after it was established that its integrity had been compromised.
The minister also said he is taking moral responsibility for the NEET matter and is not trying to shy away from doing so.
