Days after canceling the NEET-UG 2026 exam, the government on Friday took responsibility for the “drive-through breach” despite following the recommendations of the Radhakrishnan Committee. Addressing a press conference, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan vowed to take strong action against those responsible for the paper leak and said that the decision to cancel the examination conducted this month was taken in the interest of meritorious students.
“Despite the recommendations of the following Radhakrishnan Committee, there has been a breach in the chain of command. We accept that and take responsibility to improve it,” Pradhan said.
He was referring to the high-level committee led by former ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan that was formed after the NEET 2024 paper leak. The committee reportedly made 95 comprehensive recommendations for reforms in the examination process.
But there was another paper leak this year and the test conducted on May 3, 2026 was cancelled, and the test is scheduled to be repeated on June 21.
On the “role” of NTA insiders
During the press conference, Pradhan was also asked about the alleged involvement of insiders in the National Testing Agency (NTA), as mentioned in an earlier HT report. In response, the minister said: “The Central Bank of Iraq will investigate the matter thoroughly. The Central Bank of Iraq is a trustworthy agency and will investigate the matter smoothly.”
“We will have to fix wherever NTA fails, and NTA will be responsible,” the minister also said during the press conference, adding that some things have been “noted” and everything will be investigated thoroughly.
On Thursday, the CBI told a Delhi court that the NEET-UG 2026 question paper leak was due to a source within NTA, and that an investigation was underway to identify NTA officials and other government employees involved.
The government expressed regret at having to rearrange the exam, but said the decision had been made with hard-working students in mind, and to ensure the “mistakes of fraudsters” did not jeopardize their futures.
Changes in NEET re-exam
With the re-test scheduled for June 21, Dharmendra Pradhan also announced some key details about the changes in her behaviour:
- An additional time of 15 minutes is allocated this time for formalities like signing the OMR sheet at the beginning and end. The exam timing will now be from 2 pm to 5:15 pm.
- Applicants can choose the city of their choice as the examination center.
- Admit cards for repeat NEET will be released by June 14.
The minister also said that from next year, the exam will be conducted in computer-based testing (CBT) mode, for which the Radhakrishnan committee has reportedly made a strong case.
