'Learn from UPSC': SC tells NTA over NEET leak
What's the story
The Supreme Court on Friday heard petitions seeking to disband the National Testing Agency (NTA) after the recent National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)-UG 2026 paper leak incident. The paper leak forced the cancellation of this year's exam, affecting lakhs of students. During the hearing on Friday, a bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe raised concerns over the ad hoc nature of the NTA and asked it to learn from UPSC, which also conducts large-scale competitive exams.
Accountability concerns
'Real problem won't stop till actual accountability arises'
The court stressed the need for fixing clear accountability to prevent such incidents in the future. "The real problem won't stop till actual accountability arises....it will be effective when we know which individual shoulders the responsibility. Unless you identify the specific duty bearers, it will be difficult," Justice Narasimha said. "The problem is that most institutions are ad hoc. It's a phenomenon that is everywhere... It's not the individual who has the capability but the institution," he added.
UPSC
'UPSC has never been a situation'
The bench also asked NTA to learn from UPSC, which conducts large-scale exams without any paper leaks. "UPSC has never been a situation, you need to learn," Justice Narasimha added. The court has asked the Union of India to file an affidavit detailing the method through which an "institutional memory of continuity" can be created through employment of specialized personnel. This is aimed at ensuring that the NTA has both physical and intellectual resources for future exams without any issues.
Committee impact
Committee's recommendations partially implemented in NEET-UG
At the outset, Justice Narasimha asked Dr. Radhakrishnan, the head of the Monitoring Committee constituted by the court in 2024 to suggest recommendations to strengthen NEET, how the current controversy arose despite the committee's recommendations. "If this incident happened, there is something wrong with the original recommendation or there is no proper implementation," the judge remarked. Radhakrishnan said that most of their 35 long-term and around 60 short-term recommendations had been implemented.
Government response
'PM is personally monitoring the lacuna'
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta also assured the court that the government is taking this issue very seriously as it impacts the youth of India. "PM is personally monitoring the lacuna," he told the court. Justice Narasimha said that what occurred was "traumatic" for the lakhs of students who had spent years preparing for the exam. "We should not disappoint our youngsters; its very traumatizing so much investment of emotions and time," he said.
Future plans
Justice Narasimha proposes collaboration with leading universities
Justice Narasimha suggested setting up a permanent mechanism to receive and evaluate inputs to strengthen the system. He proposed collaboration with leading universities for continuous technological and institutional innovation in examination management. When SG suggested that experts from the IITs be involved, Justice Narasimha supported the concept. "Have some collaboration full-time with some universities. Methods and ideas keep changing. For instance, in AI, we would be coordinating with a university," the judge said.