Not So NEET: 'No Extra Time Given To Compensate For Wrong Paper', Parents From Haryana's Bahadurgarh Allege

The aftermath of the NEET-UG 2024 examinations has been riddled with controversies concerning the fairness and accuracy of the assessment process. The National Testing Agency (NTA) released the results on June 4, but numerous claims and petitions have emerged, challenging various aspects of the examination.

A particularly noteworthy case has surfaced from Hardayal Public School in Bahadurgarh, Haryana. This centre was among those that received grace marks due to a loss of time during the exam. An exclusive conversation with Anil Ahlawat, father of NEET aspirant Ritesh, revealed significant discrepancies that have raised serious questions about the integrity of the exam process.

On May 5, during the NEET-UG 2024 examination at Hardayal Public School, there was a mishandling of question papers. Students were initially provided with two sets of papers - QRST and MNOP.

The QRST code was intended to be the primary paper, while MNOP served as a backup. However, due to an administrative oversight, the MNOP paper was distributed to students instead of the designated QRST paper. This led students to complete the MNOP paper, believing it was their primary exam, reported Business Today.

"The school first handed out two sets of paper to the children. One is the QRST code, which was given to us earlier, and one is the MNOP, which is kept for backup. Half an hour into the examination, the authorities realised that they had given the wrong question paper to the students. And instead of taking back the back-up question paper, they took back the actual primary set of question paper. This resulted in a loss of time. However the paper ended at the designated time and the students didn't get time to compensate for the time lost due to confusion created by the administration" said a parent.

This mistake had major consequences. Parents and students raised immediate concerns about fairness and equality in assessment, leading to legal action. Compounding the issue, a similar incident occurred at a centre in Sawai Madhavpur, Rajasthan, where students received question papers meant for a different medium of instruction. The administration at this centre corrected the mistake and re-conducted the paper at 6 PM on the same day.

These mishaps, along with discrepancies in paper distribution timings, fueled claims of a leaked paper, although the NTA has denied these allegations. The controversy further deepened with reports of students receiving grace marks to compensate for lost time during the exam. These adjustments were part of the NTA's efforts to address discrepancies encountered by candidates across various centres.

In response to these developments, several petitions have been filed in courts nationwide, seeking a fair resolution and accountability from the NTA. Concerns have also been raised over the unexpected uniformity in high scores, including 67 candidates achieving a perfect 720/720 marks, which has led to further questions about the exam's integrity and fairness.

According to the latest decision by the government, the scorecards of all students who received grace marks have been cancelled. These candidates now have the option to sit for a re-test on June 23, or their new scorecards will be regenerated based on a revised marking scheme.