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Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said the central government is committed to protecting the interests of students and there will be no compromise on their future. He said the allegations of paper leak in the NEET-UG 2024 and UGC-NET exams will be probed by a high-level committee and no culprit will be spared.

“I want to assure everyone that the government is committed to protecting the interests of students. We will not compromise on transparency. It’s an unexpected and unfortunate situation before us,” he said.

He added: “The government is committed to your future. We assure you that the govt will always adopt a transparent process & practice to protect your interest…Have faith on govt and the system. Nothing wrong can be tolerated by the government.”

‘One isolated incident should not affect lakhs of students’

On the NEET row, Pradhan said the “errors are region specific” and the Bihar government is in touch with the Centre. “We had a discussion today and the Patna police will get to the depth of this matter. Once we get concrete information, the accused won’t be spared and strict action will be taken. Students are our top priority,” he said.

He added: “I would like to say humbly that we have to pay attention to the interests of lakhs of brilliant students who have passed that exam (NEET) after working very hard. As I said, in the preliminary information, the work of the Patna police is commendable. They have been able to round up one isolated incident. Some more information is awaited. Therefore, we will take final action soon. We are satisfied with their investigation.”

‘Have to rectify the system by taking responsibility’

The Union minister said the government is forming a special committee to look into the data functioning of the National Testing Agency (NTA). “Recommendations will be expected from that high-level committee to further improve NTA, its structure, functioning, examination process, transparency and data security protocol… I appeal to all not to spread rumours or politicise this sensitive issue. No culprit will be spared and this will be taken to its logical end,” he said.

He added: “Soon after it was clear that the UGC-NET question paper on the Darknet matches the original question paper, we decided to cancel the examination. By taking responsibility, we have to rectify the system.”

On Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s statement on the NEET and UGC-NET exam cancellation issue, he said the “opposition friends” must have faith in the system. “Our government is 100% committed to transparency, to the betterment of the future of our students. And I assure you again, no malpractice, no irregularity will be tolerated by our government,” he added.

Protesting students detained outside ministry, Pradhan’s residence

Pradhan’s statements come amid protests near his residence against the alleged rigging in the two major all-India examinations. More than two dozen students from different universities and members of various student outfits were detained from outside his home as well as the ministry of education.

A large number of students, including members of political outfits such as the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), All India Students Association (AISA), Democratic Students’ Front (DSF), Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS), and Congress-affiliated NSUI took part in the protest.

They gathered outside the education ministry and the Union minister’s residence demanding a ban on the NTA, the body that conducts the examination and a probe into the alleged paper leak. Late on Wednesday (June 19), the ministry ordered the cancellation of UGC-NET following inputs of the exam’s integrity being compromised. The protesting students also demanded the resignation of Pradhan over the alleged corruption in the exams.

The medical entrance examination, National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or NEET-UG, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), was held on May 5, with around 24 lakh candidates taking part. The results were announced on June 4.

There have been allegations of question paper leaks in states such as Bihar and other irregularities in the exam. The allegations have led to protests in several cities and the filing of petitions in several high courts as well as the Supreme Court.

The UGC-NET was also cancelled following inputs that the exam’s integrity may have been compromised, and handed over the matter to the CBI for an investigation. The cancellation of this exam, amid the raging row over NEET, led to questions being raised over the NTA’s capability to conduct exams of larger magnitude.

(With PTI inputs)

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