Govt considers using IAF aircraft to transport NEET-UG retest papers for June 21 exam

New Delhi: The government is exploring the possibility of using the Indian Air Force (IAF) for transportation of NEET-UG papers to ensure foolproof conduct of the retest on June 21, official sources said on Thursday. The option was explored at a high-level meeting chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and attended by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia here.

The ministers and senior officials discussed whether IAF aircraft could be used for transportation of the NEET-UG test papers, the sources said. However, as of now, no final decision has been taken and the option will be placed before Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a final view, they said. The prime minister is believed to have been personally monitoring the preparations for the June 21 retest and he is being updated on every details related to the examination process, the sources said.

Thursday's meeting gave attention to the entire examination process, ”from the setting of question papers by teachers and printing of papers to transportation and security arrangements. National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Abhishek Singh and senior officials from the Education Ministry, among others, attended the meeting. The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or NEET-UG was conducted on May 3 across 551 Indian cities and at 14 overseas centres.

Also read NEET Paper Leak Row: Raut calls Maharashtra ‘centre point’, attacks CM, Union Minister Pradhan

Nearly 23 lakh candidates had registered for the test, which was conducted by the NTA. According to the NTA, information regarding alleged malpractices was received on the evening of May 7, four days after the exam was held. The NTA said the inputs were shared with the central agencies the next morning for "independent verification and necessary action". On May 12, the NTA cancelled NEET-UG amid allegations of paper leak. A re-examination has been scheduled for June 21.

The CBI registered a case based on a written complaint by the Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education. The central probe agency formed special teams to probe the case, conducted searches across the country and made prompt arrests So far, 13 accused have been arrested in this case from Delhi, Jaipur, Gurugram, Nasik, Pune, Latur and Ahilyanagar. The investigation conducted so far has brought out the actual source of the leakage of the question papers, the CBI had said earlier.