A big change has come to light regarding the medical entrance examination NEET-UG. The National Testing Agency (NTA) told the Supreme Court on Friday that from the year 2027, the NEET-UG exam will be conducted in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode. That means now this exam will be online instead of the traditional pen-paper mode.
NTA gave this information in the affidavit filed in the Supreme Court. The apex court is currently hearing the petitions related to the NEET-UG paper leak case and the cancellation of the examination held on May 3. This case is going on before the bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe.
NTA said in its affidavit that the High Level Expert Committee (HLCE) has recommended changing NEET-UG to CBT mode. The agency said that NEET-UG 2026 was the only major examination, which till now was being conducted in pen-paper mode, whereas other major examinations of NTA are already conducted online.
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High-level committee recommended
According to the affidavit, after consultation with the Health Ministry and the National Medical Commission, NEET-UG will be completely brought into CBT mode from the next examination cycle i.e. 2027. Along with this, there are also preparations to implement multi-session and multi-stage examination system.
According to news agency PTI, NTA said that in June 2024, the Education Ministry has appointed former ISRO chief Dr. K. A high level committee was formed under the chairmanship of Radhakrishnan, which gave 101 recommendations to improve the examination system. To implement these recommendations, High Power Steering Committee (HPSC) was also constituted in November 2024.
AI tools will be used, human interference will be less
The agency claimed that many major steps have been taken to strengthen the transparency and security of the examination. A new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been implemented for preparing and examining the question paper. Apart from this, randomization and rotation policy is being adopted in the appointment of paper setters, translators and moderators.
NTA also said that in future at least 85 percent translation work will be done with the help of AI based tools, so that human intervention is reduced and the possibility of incidents like paper leak is reduced.
The affidavit said that more than 22 lakh students had appeared in the NEET-UG examination held on May 3, 2026. After allegations of paper leak, the examination was canceled and the investigation of the case has been handed over to CBI. NTA said that it is fully cooperating with the investigating agencies and all necessary steps are being taken to maintain the credibility of the examination system.
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