Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday, 11 October mounted a sharp attack on the Central government after the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education released its 382nd report on the National Testing Agency (NTA), alleging it lays bare "grave incompetence and malpractice" within the exam-conducting body and the Ministry of Education. The report, titled 'Reforms and Strengthening of the National Testing Agency (NTA)', was chaired by Congress Rajya Sabha member Mukul Wasnik and presented on 9 October.

Context: NEET-UG 2026 Cancellation

The report arrives in the aftermath of the cancellation of the NEET-UG 2026 examination following question paper leaks — the latest in a string of examination controversies surrounding the NTA. Among the committee's key recommendations are shifting medical entrance exams entirely to Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode, capping the maximum age and number of attempts for NEET-UG, and directing the NTA's financial surplus toward establishing government-owned examination centres in every district. The panel also called for stringent "quarantine" protocols for question-setters to curb paper leaks at source.

Ministry's Claim vs. Congress's Counter

Ramesh reserved particular criticism for what he described as a "blatantly false and audacious claim" by the Ministry of Education before the parliamentary committee — namely, that no paper leak had occurred in any NTA-conducted exam from its formation in 2017 until 2025. He alleged that at least 9 paper leaks and irregularities in NTA-conducted exams are documented. "What hope is there for a fair investigation or accountability when the Ministry even refuses to acknowledge what went wrong in the first place?" he said.

Ramesh also questioned the NTA's legal architecture, noting that the agency is registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 rather than constituted as a statutory body through an Act of Parliament — a structure he said results in "limited accountability and parliamentary oversight." He described the NTA as a "khokhla body" that delegates all key responsibilities to private contractors.

Staffing Crisis and Contractor Dependence

According to Ramesh, the NTA has only 39 sanctioned positions, of which just 23 officers are currently in post — a vacancy rate of 41%. He noted that all permanent posts are filled through deputation, with officers serving tenures of only 2–3 years, preventing the development of institutional expertise. "This is despite the emphasis of the K Radhakrishnan Committee on building the NTA's staff strength," he added. The skeleton workforce, he argued, forces the agency into near-total reliance on private contractors for paper-setting, logistics, printing, and administration.

Transparency, Blacklists, and Results Publication

Ramesh pointed to a systemic gap: the absence of a nationwide blacklist of firms with poor track records in examination services. He alleged that firms blacklisted in one state routinely secure government contracts in others — a loophole that, in his view, creates recurring opportunities for malpractice. He also criticised the NTA for not publishing NEET-UG results in a publicly accessible format — unlike the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) — arguing that the absence of test-centre-wise data prevents detection of anomalous performance patterns.

Leadership Vacuum and Surplus Funds

The Congress leader further alleged that between the NEET paper leak of 2024 and the NEET paper leak of 2026, the position of Director General of the NTA was held only on additional charge, leaving the agency without a full-time head during a period of acute institutional reform. He also claimed the NTA had accumulated a revenue surplus of ₹590 crore, which had reportedly been parked in fixed deposits to earn interest rather than deployed to upgrade examination infrastructure or support students. Taking aim at former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Ramesh recalled that Pradhan had dismissed a prior set of Standing Committee recommendations on NTA reform because the committee "had members of the Opposition in it." He concluded by urging the government to take the latest report seriously.

The Ministry of Education and the NTA had not issued a formal response to these allegations as of Sunday evening. How the government chooses to act on the parliamentary committee's recommendations — including the shift to CBT mode and the creation of district-level exam centres — will be closely watched in the weeks ahead.