The court said the NTA should be equipped with the necessary infrastructure, manpower and technological capabilities
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Centre to inform it about the steps taken to implement the recommendations of the Radhakrishnan Committee and the Nandan Nilekani committee on reforms in the National Testing Agency (NTA), stressing the need to institutionalise changes in the examination body.
A two-judge bench of Justices P.S. Narasimha and Alok Aradhe said reforms in the NTA must be institutionalised and technological changes were needed for the smooth conduct of entrance examinations.
The seven-member Radhakrishnan Committee was set up by the Union education ministry in the wake of the NEET-UG paper leak to recommend reforms in the examination process, improvement in data security protocols and changes in the structure and functioning of the NTA.
The Centre had also constituted a high-powered task force led by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani for structural reforms in competitive examinations.
"The Radhakrishnan Committee has correctly said it is a systemic problem which needs institutionalisation, which is the most important part of it. This process on paper everything is good. But then one exam happens and by the time the second exam happens it is a new picture all together," the apex court said.
The court said the NTA should be equipped with the necessary infrastructure, manpower and technological capabilities.
"We are informed that the committee which has been constituted has considered various recommendations for reforms, focusing on leveraging advanced technology like AI and blockchain to strengthen the security and integrity of the examination. We direct the Secretary to file an affidavit indicating and detailing the steps that have been taken to implement the suggestions made by the Radhakrishnan committee as reflected and nuanced by the Nandan Nilekani committee. Affidavit with the indicative timelines to be filed within three weeks," the top court said.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court about the safeguards adopted from the printing of NEET question papers until they reach students.
Mehta said the system in place for the NEET examinations was foolproof and difficult to breach. Several moderators are asked to prepare a question bank without knowing which questions will form part of the examination paper, he said.
"Several moderators are asked to prepare a question bank of say, 500 questions for a subject so that one person is not deciding which 100 questions come in the question paper," Mehta said.
The Solicitor General said examination papers are sent to separately identified printers under CCTV surveillance and CISF security. The question papers are transported under police escort and GPS tracking and stored in separate bank strong rooms, he said.
On the day of the examination, one set of question papers is selected and transported to examination centres under security. The papers are opened in the presence of officials and students and the process is videographed, Mehta said.
The court pointed out that the safeguards described by Mehta had already been considered by the Radhakrishnan Committee.
Stressing the need to ensure that the NTA functions as a vibrant institution, the court said: "Our duty is to ensure that there is a vibrant institution that the country can be proud of. If you don't institutionalise, experienced people get transferred and the entire experience is lost. There are a lot of technological changes that have to be brought about.”
The court cited the Union Public Service Commission as an example of how an examination-conducting body develops institutional expertise over time.
"Over a period of time regularly they (UPSC) were conducting exam after exam and they have collected institutional memory and expertise because it happened over a period of time. The body which is entrusted in conducting the exam, ensures that it also upgrades itself and becomes a vibrant institution like that," the top court observed.
The court was hearing a batch of petitions, including one filed by advocate Tanvi Dubey on behalf of the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA).
One of the pleas sought replacement or restructuring of the NTA, which conducts NEET-UG, with a robust and autonomous body to conduct the medical entrance examination.
The CBI is probing the paper leak allegations.
