UGC-NET 2024: The Narendra Modi government has cancelled the UGC-NET 2024 exam following the reports questioning the test’s integrity.
Passing the order in this regard, the Union Ministry of Education on June 19 also handed over the matter to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a probe.
This comes amid the ongoing controversy over the alleged irregularities during the medical entrance exam NEET.
The Education Ministry also sought a report from the Bihar Police’s Economic Offences Unit regarding alleged irregularities in the conduct of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test 2024 in Patna.
The NET this year was conducted in pen-and-paper mode, a shift from earlier practice.
It’s a test to determine the eligibility of Indian nationals for the award of Junior Research Fellowships, appointment as assistant professors, and admission to PhD in Indian universities and colleges.
Months before the alleged exam irregularities were reported, the parliament had passed an ‘anti-cheating’ bill to check fraudulent practices in government recruitment exams.
Following which President Droupadi Murmu had cleared the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill in February last.
The Modi government 2.0 brought the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 to curb leaks, malpractices and organised malpractices in recruitment examinations such as UPSC, SSC, etc. and entrance tests such as NEET, JEE, and CUET.
The law proposes that unfair means be punishable by imprisonment for three to five years with a fine of up to ₹10 lakh.
In case a person, group or persons commits an organised crime of this nature which includes the examination authority, service providers or any other institutions, they will be punished with imprisonment of five to 10 years with a minimum fine of ₹1 crore.
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It also empowers agencies to attach and forfeit the properties of institutions involved in committing organized crime for the proportionate recovery of the cost of examination.
In the recent years, organized cheating and leaks of question papers affected the interests of lakhs of students due to the cancellation of tests and examinations.
