The Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, chaired by Shri Mukul Wasnik, presented its 382nd Report on "Reforms and Strengthening of the National Testing Agency (NTA)" to the Chairman of Rajya Sabha on 9th October 2026. The report was adopted by the Committee on 25th August 2026 after consultations with the Secretary of Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, NTA Chairperson, Director General, and Dr. K. Radhakrishnan's High-Level Committee of Experts.

Key Findings and Recommendations

The Committee noted that NTA conducts examinations for approximately 1.2 crore students annually, including high-stakes tests like JEE-Mains, NEET-UG, UGC-NET, and CUET, making it the gateway to India's higher education system. The cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 despite security measures demonstrated the urgent need for procedural and institutional reforms.

Examination Security and Integrity

The Committee recommended investing in large, diverse question banks to prevent paper leaks, with questions drawn digitally close to exam time and vetted by sequestered experts from renowned institutions like IITs, AIIMS, and IIMs. It emphasized cultivating an institutional culture where every official acts as a guardian of examination integrity rather than just an administrative jobholder.

Structural and Operational Reforms

The report highlighted critical manpower shortages, with only 23 officers occupying the 39 sanctioned positions (41% vacancy), all filled through deputation with limited tenures of 2-3 years. The Committee recommended hiring permanent specialists in psychometrics, examination security, digital infrastructure, data analytics, and examination logistics, treating the 16 Central Staffing Scheme posts as supplementary leadership rather than domain expertise substitutes.

Computer-Based Testing Transition

The Committee broadly concurred with the High-Level Committee of Experts' phased transition to CBT, noting that NEET-UG remains an outlier using pen-and-paper testing while other major exams have already transitioned. Recommendations included establishing 1,000 secure government-owned CBT centers across Tier-2, Tier-3 cities and rural areas, with at least one center per district to minimize student burden. The NTA should financially support mid-sized IT labs (100-200 nodes) in schools and colleges, provided they make space available for examination purposes.

Specific Procedural Improvements

The Committee addressed two key procedural concerns: allocating a separate 15-minute window for administrative formalities rather than during exam time, and allowing genuinely late candidates to attempt exams for remaining time after signing an undertaking. It also recommended amending the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 to direct District Administrations to withhold permission for rallies or public gatherings on examination days.

Examination Design and Equity

The report noted that NEET-UG currently qualifies far more candidates than available MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and nursing seats combined, creating unnecessary stress. It recommended data-based review of qualifying percentiles to align with actual seat availability without compromising merit. The Committee also suggested examining a two-stage format for large examinations like NEET, with common prelims and specialized mains for different medical streams.

Regulatory and Transparency Measures

The Committee recommended creating a National Registry of Blacklisted Examination Vendors, publicly accessible online, to prevent firms blacklisted by one state from securing contracts elsewhere. It urged NTA to conduct annual Equity Audits examining participation rates, pass rates, and cutoff achievement rates disaggregated by State, gender, school board type, medium of instruction, and social category (OBC, SC, ST, EWS, general), with findings published in NTA's Annual Report.

Financial and Resource Management

The Committee noted that NTA has accumulated a revenue surplus of ₹590 crores between FY 2018-2019 and FY 2024-2025, with surplus funds invested in Fixed Deposits. It recommended using this corpus for investment in government-owned CBT centers and mock examinations to familiarize students with the CBT interface.

Additional Recommendations

The report included numerous other recommendations: exploring reasonable age and attempt limits for NEET-UG (with exception for UGC-NET); ensuring exam papers test conceptual understanding based on official school curriculum rather than coaching techniques; providing mental health support and counseling helplines; increasing state government representation on NTA's Governing Body; establishing a research wing with academic expertise; eventually implementing Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) as the gold standard; creating robust cybersecurity capabilities; avoiding additional charge appointments for key positions like Director General; developing protocols for students with disabilities; and conducting any required printing only in NTA-owned facilities.

The Committee noted that implementation of Dr. Radhakrishnan Committee's 101 recommendations is ongoing, with 60 reforms pertaining to 2025 and 2026, and urged expedited implementation of pending reforms. It recommended that NTA refocus exclusively on admission tests for higher education institutions, aligning with its mission statement, rather than conducting recruitment examinations.