Exam reforms: Nilekani panel consults ex-ISRO chief

The high-level task force on exam reforms, led by Nandan Nilekani, recently sought input from former ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan, who previously headed a panel established by the Central government in response to the 2024 NEET paper leak. This task force, established in July, is currently engaging with various stakeholders such as students, parents, teachers, academic institutions, subject matter experts, industry organizations, and exam-conducting bodies to gather suggestions.

In June 2024, Radhakrishnan chaired the Radhakrishnan Committee, which submitted its recommendations in October of the same year. Following the submission, the Central government formed the High Powered Steering Committee (HPSC), also led by Radhakrishnan, to oversee the execution of these recommendations. As the Ministry of Education implemented these suggestions, another paper leak in the medical entrance exam NEET sparked widespread protests and ultimately resulted in the resignation of former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

In response, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the formation of the Nandan Nilekani-led high-powered task force to propose reforms aimed at ensuring a leakproof examination system. The panel is presently reviewing examination processes and recommending reforms to enhance the examination system's robustness, security, transparency, trustworthiness, and future-readiness.

The recommendations of the task force will be based on leveraging the latest technologies. The task force has held extensive discussions with multiple stakeholders, including DG NTA and the Department of Higher Education. The seven-member Radhakrishnan Committee made 101 recommendations for enhanced security controls for examination-critical systems, including question paper systems, candidate registration, fee payment, admit card systems, computer-based testing platforms, OMR processing, normalization engines, and result systems.

The panel also suggested restricting NTA's scope to higher education entrance exams and overhauling its governance, security, and digital infrastructure. The Supreme Court criticized NTA for its failure to learn from previous mistakes, and the Centre is expected to submit a status report on implementing the previous recommendations.