Centre to enforce expert panel’s NEET-UG reform recommendations

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that it would implement all the remedial measures suggested by its seven-member expert panel on exam reforms after reviewing the National Testing Agency's (NTA) functioning in conducting NEET-UG last year.

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta informed a bench comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and Manoj Misra that the Centre-appointed committee had filed its report and the government would implement all the recommendations. “We are going to implement all the recommendations and the matter can be listed after six months,” the law officer said. “The matter is adjourned for three months. List this special leave petition in the month of April,” the bench added.

The entire report has not been placed on record as it also contained details regarding issues like question paper printing, among others. On October 21 last year, the top court had extended the time granted to the Centre-appointed seven-member expert panel to file its report on exam reforms.

On August 2, the apex court refused to annul the controversial NEET-UG of 2024, stating that there was insufficient material on record to indicate a systemic leak or malpractice compromising the examination's integrity.

The top court had also expanded the remit of the seven-member expert panel, headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) chief K. Radhakrishnan, to review the functioning of the NTA and recommend exam reforms to make the NEET-UG (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate) transparent and free from malpractices.

The NEET-UG is conducted by the NTA for admission to undergraduate medical programmes in both government and private medical colleges.

While expanding the scope of the expert panel, the top court flagged multiple lapses on the part of the NTA, including a security breach at an examination centre in Jharkhand's Hazaribagh where the rear door of the strongroom was opened and unauthorised people were permitted to access question papers, transportation of question papers by e-rickshaws, and distribution of incorrect sets of question papers among candidates.

In addition to the tasks entrusted by the Union government and the NTA, the committee's remit shall encompass examination security and administration, data security and technological enhancements, the top court said.

Its responsibilities will also include policy and stakeholder engagement, collaboration and international cooperation, recommendations for providing mental health support to students, and training of NTA staff, it added.

Besides Radhakrishnan, other members of the expert committee are Randeep Guleria, B.J. Rao, Ramamurthy K, Pankaj Bansal, Aditya Mittal, and Govind Jaiswal.

Over 23 lakh students took the NEET-UG in 2024 for admissions to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and other related courses.

In November last year, the top court dismissed a petition seeking a review of the August 2 verdict, which had refused to allow a fresh NEET-UG 2024 examination.