NEW DELHI: The Centre on Tuesday filed a compliance affidavit before the Supreme Court in the NEET-UG case, stating that it is actively considering shifting the medical entrance examination to a computer-based test (CBT), similar to JEE. However, it said a final decision will be taken only after receiving recommendations from a high-level task force headed by Nandan Nilekani.
In its affidavit, the Centre said it has already initiated two major reforms, a tougher anti-cheating law, the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Act, 2026, which provides for up to 10 years' imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 5 crore, and the constitution of the Nandan Nilekani-led Task Force on examination reforms.
The submission came in response to a petition filed by the All India Medical Association through advocate Tanvi Dubey, seeking directions to make NEET-UG leak-proof following allegations of paper leaks this year.
The Centre informed the court that the migration from the current pen-and-paper format to a computer-based mode is under active consideration by all stakeholders. It added that the final approach will be decided after the High-Powered Task Force submits its recommendations.
The affidavit also detailed the extensive security measures currently in place for NEET-UG, including multiple question paper sets prepared in isolation, six layers of tamper-proof packaging, and QR code and Aadhaar-based tracking of every question paper box.
For the June 21 re-examination alone, the Centre said authorities deployed 51,311 signal jammers, 1.38 lakh CCTV cameras, and 87,000 personnel for frisking and biometric verification.
The Centre further pointed out that the National Testing Agency (NTA) has already migrated most of its large-scale examinations, including JEE Main, CUET-UG, CUET-PG, UGC-NET, and CSIR-NET, to the computer-based format. NEET-UG, it noted, is now the only major national entrance examination still conducted offline.
The government also outlined a 10-stage security protocol covering question paper setting, printing, transportation, storage, and evaluation. According to the affidavit, the system ensures that no single individual has unsupervised access to the examination process and incorporates tamper-proof packaging, CCTV surveillance, armed escorts, and digital tracking of both question papers and OMR sheets.
The Supreme Court had earlier asked the Centre to examine the feasibility of conducting NEET-UG in a computer-based format. The matter will now be heard after the Nandan Nilekani-led task force submits its report.