NEET Exam: Minister Explains Is Not Cancelled Despite Paper Leak Probe

The government has decided not to cancel the medical entrance examination NEET, despite a blazing scandal and an ongoing inquiry into the paper being leaked a day before the exam.

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Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan explained that the breach affected just a small number of students, in contrast to prior occurrences in 2004 and 2015, in which larger disclosures resulted in exam cancellations.

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He claimed that canceling the exam would have a negative impact on lakhs of students who had correctly passed it.

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He also stated that the Supreme Court is hearing the matter, and that the court's ruling will be final.

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A squabble ensued after 67 individuals achieved a perfect 720 in the NEET-UG exam, and the National Testing Agency revealed that they had provided grace marks to some students due to an incorrect question and a delay in candidates receiving the question paper late.

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The NTA administered the NEET-UG 2024 examination for undergraduate medical programs on May 5, which drew over 24 lakh students. The results were announced ahead of schedule on June 4.

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However, claims of a question paper leak and the awarding of grace marks to more than 1,500 students sparked widespread protests and legal action, including cases filed in various courts, most notably the Supreme Court, which strongly criticized the NTA's handling of the matter.

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The Centre has refused to cancel the exam because the breach is considered to be localized, and just a few students from Bihar benefited. A student and three other suspects have been arrested and are being questioned in Bihar.

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Mr Pradhan described the leak of the UGC-NET exam's question paper as a "institutional failure" of the National Testing Agency (NTA), and stated that the government will form a high-level panel to investigate the agency's operations, but that the exam will not be cancelled.

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