NTA chief claims NEET-UG re-exam was ‘error-free and flawless’; says Telegram was creating fake perception of paper leak

Abhishek Singh, the Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), claimed on Monday that the re-examination for NEET-UG was 'error-free and flawless' as he stressed the security measures taken in order to conduct the examination in a smooth manner for all candidates participating across the country.

Singh also backed the government's contentious decision to temporarily ban Telegram in India, saying it was a necessary move to prevent paper leaks that add to candidates' stress. Singh claimed that such platforms were "sending a fake perception of leak" and "encouraging fraudsters," as per his interview with news agency ANI.

Singh told the news outlet that the NTA focused heavily on security this time around while also being mindful of the pressures the students are facing. He noted, “This was as error-free and as flawless as it can be. We took every necessary step to strike a balance between security and student convenience... We worked with all agencies, all security agencies, to ensure that we are able to conduct an examination which is not only glitch-free, but which is also a zero-error examination with zero tolerance for any malpractice.”

On a temporary Telegram ban

Regarding the Telegram ban, he said, “We were 100% sure that the papers were safe, everything was safe, secure, and we have complete control of the chain of custody. What these platforms were doing was that they were sending a fake perception of a leak, which adds to the mental stress and trauma of students because we are dealing with 17 and 18-year-olds, and if these rumours keep on floating, they keep on wondering what if something goes wrong again, and it is not fair to the young minds?”

"Then, these platforms were also encouraging fraudsters to fool people with fake question papers and playing on the anxiety and the vulnerability of people, so that they will pay up small amounts to get a document which will have nothing to do with the question paper. It was required to ensure that the fake perception of a leak or a system failure in cybercrime, in which the fraudsters would scam people into losing money, that has to be prevented," Singh further added.

The Union government had ordered the temporary blocking of Telegram in India from 16 to 22 June following a request from the NTA, which claimed that the platform was being used by organised cheating rackets to mislead and defraud candidates appearing for NEET-UG.

Singh asserted that wrongdoers are under surveillance, and assured the public that the integrity of the examinations remains intact.

“Anybody who tries to spread misinformation, share fake videos, share fake posts in order to scam someone or in order to increase the mental stress of people, the strong arm of the law will come down very strongly on it. All such cases are in our radar and we have reported to them and those who are perpetrating them will be dealt with very strongly by the police and the law enforcement agencies...There is no possibility of any leak in this examination,” said Singh.

Describing the process as a massive collective effort, Singh stated, "It was a whole of government approach, a whole of India approach in which all government of India departments, state governments, district machinery, students, parents, all stakeholders came together to convey a message to all the fraudsters and scamsters that you cannot beat the system."

NEET-UG re-examination

On Sunday, 21 June, the re-examinations of the high-stakes NEET-UG 2026, which were initially held on 3 May, were conducted across the country and in 14 destinations abroad. Around 20 lakh candidates appeared for the exam at 5.440 centres.

The NTA claimed that the examination was conducted without any hiccup across the country. The examination was held under strong security measures in 13 languages.

Among the security measures undertaken were Aadhaar-based biometric and facial authentication, CCTV surveillance, signal jammers, two-layer frisking, and real-time monitoring through command-and-control centres established at the NTA, the Ministry of Education, state headquarters, and district collectorates.

With agency inputs.