Vineet Joshi has been replaced by Benaresh Pal Gangwar as Higher Education Minister, in a major move by the government amid growing criticism of the education ministry and allegations of examination irregularities, including leakage of NEET-UG papers.
Joshi, who held one of the most important posts in the education ministry, was replaced late on Thursday night as student protests over leakage of NEET-UG papers intensified across the country. He has now been appointed secretary in the Panchayati Raj Ministry, news agency PTI reported.
Who is Vineet Joshi?
Vineet Joshi, a 1992 batch IAS officer, is one of the key bureaucrats in India’s education department. During his career, he held many important roles, including Chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), first Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), and Acting Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC).
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Joshi has also been given additional charge as Secretary, School Education after Sanjay Kumar retired from the post on June 30.
During his tenure as Director General of the National Tourism Agency, the agency introduced the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for undergraduate admission. However, the agency has also faced criticism over technical issues and disruptions during key exams, adding to the challenges surrounding the conduct of entrance exams.
Before returning to the Education Ministry, Joshi served as Chief Secretary of Manipur in 2023, a period marked by ethnic violence in the northeastern state.
New appointments in the Ministry of Education
After Joshi’s transfer, Naresh Kumar Gangwar was appointed as the new Higher Education Minister, while TK Anil Kumar took over as School Education Secretary.
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Gangwar was earlier the secretary of the Ministry of Animal Husbandry. He is an IAS officer of Rajasthan batch of 1994. According to media reports, three of his family members received financial benefits of over $1.16 lakh crore over five years under the National Horticulture Council scheme.
Before his appointment in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry, Gangwar worked as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, where he handled issues related to control of pollution and hazardous substances.
TK Anil Kumar was earlier working as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Rural Development.
The Ministry of Education faces repeated setbacks
The latest amendment comes after the Ministry of Education faced criticism over multiple issues in recent months. The ministry first came under scrutiny following the issues it faced in CBSE’s introduction of on-screen marking (OSM) for Class 12 board exams, and later over allegations linked to leaking of NEET-UG papers.
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Last month, the government removed CBSE chief Rahul Singh and secretary Himanshu Gupta after a backlash over technical glitches, unclear answer sheets and evaluation errors in the digital marking system. They were replaced by Lokhande Prashant Sitaram and Varun Bhardwaj.
The ministry also transferred Aanchal Katiyar, who was heading information and communications, to the livestock ministry. Rashmi Roja Thushara Nair has been appointed in her place.
NEET protests keep pressure on Centre
The NEET-UG controversy has grown into a nationwide student movement, with protesters raising concerns over paper leaks, alleged police actions against protesters and demanding accountability.
Opposition parties supported the protests and demanded Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation besides discussing the issue in Parliament.
This is not the first time that the Ministry of Education has faced such a crisis. In 2024, after allegations of NEET paper leak and confirmed leak of UGC-NET question paper, NTA Director General Subodh Kumar Singh was removed from the post.
Singh was put on compulsory waiting for nearly four months before being appointed Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Steel. He was later reinstated in the Chhattisgarh cadre.
(With inputs from PTI)
