UP Board, NTA join hands to curb copying mafia in competitive exams

The National Testing Agency (NTA), which faced controversy following the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) paper leak last year, has implemented significant changes in its system.

For the first time, state and district-level committees have been formed to ensure transparent and fair conduct of exams like the Joint Entrance Examination (Main), NEET (UG), Central University Entrance Test (CUET) and UGC National Eligibility Test (NET). A special feature in Uttar Pradesh this year will be the collaboration between UP Board officials and NTA to prevent copying mafia from compromising these exams, officials stated.

UP chief secretary Manoj Kumar Singh has appointed UP Board secretary Bhagwati Singh as the nodal officer for the state-level coordination committee, set up to ensure the transparency and success of the examinations conducted by NTA across various districts in UP. Additionally, Director General of Police (Law and Order) LR Kumar has been appointed as the state police representative, they added.

The first session of JEE (Mains)-2025 examination has already been conducted in January end under these state and district-level committees.

Instructions to all DMs and police officers

Special secretary to the central government VK Singh in a missive sent on February 24 has directed all district magistrates, police commissioners, senior superintendents of police and superintendents of police to ensure strict compliance of the guidelines of the state/district-level coordination committees.

The letter, a copy if which is with HT, has been sent along with a letter of the Director General of National Testing Agency, Ministry of Education that requests to comply with the instructions/ responsibilities of the state/district-level coordination committee and make security arrangements for the successful, peaceful and fair conduct of the upcoming NEET (UG)- 2025, JEE (Main), CUET and other examinations.

Responsibilities of state-level coordination committee

Establishing a hotline between CS, DGP and DG NTA

Preparing an integrated strategy to break the nexus of paper leak mafia

Prepare an exam-specific strategy for exams, to ensure fair, transparent and error-free exam

Ensure that district-level committees are constituted and operational

Review the performance of the district-level committee after every major exam

Submit a consolidated report based on the comments and suggestions of the district level committee to the NTA for necessary action.

District committee headed by DM

A district-level coordination committee has been constituted for NTA under the chairmanship of the district magistrate. It comprises the head of the police department of the district, district nodal officer of NTA, education officer, district IB officer (DCIO/AD) and NIC officer. The responsibility of the district committee is to identify suitable examination centres after thorough scrutiny of the examinations conducted in the previous year. While suggesting centres, analysis of the background of the operators, previous incidents of paper leak and inputs from Intelligence Bureau/Local Intelligence Unit (LIU) will have to be considered. It will be responsible for preparing a list of suspicious elements/miscreants and keeping a close watch on their activities.