AIAPGET retest for 49 Jaipur candidates on Sept 1 after power failure
Synopsis
A power failure at a Jaipur exam centre left 49 AIAPGET candidates unable to finish their test on 22 August — and the NTA's announcement of a 1 September retest arrives as the agency is already under fire for UGC-NET cancellations. The incident puts fresh pressure on an organisation that Education Minister Pralhad Joshi has already directed to tighten its infrastructure standards.
Key Takeaways
NTA announced a retest on 1 September 2026 for 49 candidates affected by a power failure during the AIAPGET on 22 August 2026 .
The outage occurred at Shri Satya Sai PG College Centre, Jaipur , and was attributed to exam-conducting agency Eduquity Career Technologies Private Limited .
Of 36,979 registered candidates , 35,837 appeared across 200 centres ; 35,788 completed the exam.
The retest will be held at Rajasthan College of Engineering for Women, Jaipur , at 10 am IST .
Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi had on 18 August 2026 directed the NTA to strengthen exam infrastructure after three UGC-NET sessions were cancelled over question paper errors.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) on 22 August 2026 announced a re-examination on 1 September 2026 for 49 candidates who were unable to complete the All India Ayush Post Graduate Entrance Test (AIAPGET) after a power failure disrupted their session at a centre in Jaipur. The agency attributed the outage to Eduquity Career Technologies Private Limited, the exam-conducting agency at the affected venue.
What Happened at the Jaipur Centre
The AIAPGET was conducted on 22 August 2026 for 36,979 registered candidates across 200 centres nationwide in Shift-I. Of these, 35,837 candidates appeared, and 35,788 were able to complete the examination. At Shri Satya Sai PG College Centre in Jaipur, 192 candidates appeared, but 49 could not finish the test due to the power disruption.
Retest Details
According to the NTA's statement posted on X, the re-examination for the affected candidates will be held on 1 September 2026 at 10 am at Rajasthan College of Engineering for Women, Jaipur. The agency said revised admit cards will be issued to the concerned candidates with further details. The NTA expressed regret for the inconvenience caused.
NTA Under Scrutiny Over Exam Integrity
This incident comes at a particularly sensitive time for the NTA. On 18 August 2026, Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi chaired a review meeting with the agency and directed officials to ensure adequate security and infrastructure for the smooth conduct of examinations. The directive followed the cancellation of three University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) sessions — for English, Commerce, and Sociology — after errors and anomalies were found in the question papers.
The UGC-NET, which determines eligibility for Assistant Professor appointments, PhD admissions, and Junior Research Fellowship awards, is among the most high-stakes examinations administered by the NTA. Its cancellations have intensified public and political scrutiny of the agency's operational standards.
Accountability Questions Mount
Critics argue that the AIAPGET power failure, while attributed to a third-party vendor, adds to a pattern of disruptions that have eroded confidence in the NTA's examination ecosystem. The agency has faced growing calls for systemic reform, including independent audits of exam-conducting partners and stricter infrastructure mandates for test centres. Notably, this is not the first time a vendor failure has been cited as the cause of an exam disruption under NTA oversight.
The retest on 1 September 2026 will be closely watched as a measure of the agency's ability to restore normalcy and credibility for affected candidates.
Point of View
Eduquity Career Technologies, is legally convenient but operationally unconvincing — the agency remains the principal responsible for centre readiness. What is striking is the timing: this disruption follows Education Minister Joshi's explicit directive to fix infrastructure gaps, issued just four days earlier. If vendor failures can still derail exams after a ministerial review, the directive lacked teeth. The deeper problem is structural: the NTA's model of outsourcing exam logistics to private agencies without rigorous real-time oversight creates accountability gaps that candidates — not agencies — end up paying for.
NationPress
22 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the AIAPGET retest being held on 1 September 2026?
The NTA scheduled the retest for 49 candidates who could not complete the AIAPGET on 22 August 2026 due to a power failure at Shri Satya Sai PG College Centre in Jaipur. The outage was attributed to the exam-conducting agency, Eduquity Career Technologies Private Limited.
Where will the AIAPGET retest take place?
The retest will be conducted at Rajasthan College of Engineering for Women in Jaipur on 1 September 2026 at 10 am IST. Revised admit cards with further details will be issued to the 49 affected candidates.
How many candidates appeared for AIAPGET 2026 overall?
Of 36,979 registered candidates, 35,837 appeared for the AIAPGET on 22 August 2026 across 200 centres. Of those, 35,788 successfully completed the examination.
What is the AIAPGET and who takes it?
The All India Ayush Post Graduate Entrance Test (AIAPGET) is a national-level entrance exam for admission to postgraduate Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) courses across India. It is administered by the NTA.
Why is the NTA facing criticism beyond the AIAPGET incident?
The NTA has been under scrutiny after cancelling three UGC-NET sessions — for English, Commerce, and Sociology — following errors and anomalies in the question papers. Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi held a review meeting on 18 August 2026 and directed the agency to strengthen exam infrastructure and security protocols.
