Admit cards of UGC NET candidates not retained by authorities as oppposed to NTA instructions: Was scrapping this exam pre-planned to make up for the NEET blunder?

UGC-NET 2024 cancelled: In an unforeseen turn of events, the Ministry of Education notified the cancellation of UGC-NET June 2024 examination late on Wednesday night, after receiving inputs from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs, indicating that the integrity of the examination might have been compromised.
The NTA has come under fire in recent weeks for mismanagement, particularly in the matter of naming an unprecedented 67 all-India rank 1 candidates for the NEET UG 2024 exam. As a result, stakeholders and NEET aspirants expressed concern and sued the exam body over various alleged discrepancies including grace marks and paper leak. The Supreme Court is currently hearing a plea over alleged paper leak, with the next hearing scheduled for July 8, 2024.
The cancellation of the UGC NET 2024 exam which came close on the heels of the NEET UG controversy. Over 9 lakh candidates appeared for the UGC NET 2024 June session, according to NTA data. These recent controversies have raised concerns among candidates and stakeholders about the integrity and effectiveness of the national-level examination body NTA, established in November 2017 to conduct entrance examination admissions and recruitment.
Why was the UGC-NET 2024 exam cancelled?
The UGC-NET June 2024 Examination was cancelled on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, after the University Grants Commission (UGC) received information from the National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit (I4C) of the Ministry of Home Affairs suggesting that the integrity of this NTA exam might have been compromised. To maintain transparency and the sanctity of the examination process, the Ministry of Education has decided to cancel the UGC NET 2024 June session. A new examination will be organised, the details of which will be announced in due course.
Candidates were allowed to carry back their admit cards, countering NTA’s written instructions
TOI spoke with a number of candidates who took the UGC-NET June 2024 exam on June 18, and learnt that the exam authorities refused to collect the admit cards of the candidates this time, a deviation from the traditional practice of many NTA exams. According to general practice, the NTA, when conducting entrance exams, requires candidates to affix their left-thumb impression, a photo and a signature (on the exam day, in presence of the invigilator). Additionally, the admit cards are retained by the invigilator post-exam. TOI accessed one of the question papers used in the UGC NET exam that took place on June 18, wherein under the ‘Instructions for Candidate’ section it is written in bold:
“After the examination is over, the candidates shall hand over the OMR Answer Sheet to the invigilator. The candidate can take away the Question Booklet after the examination is over. If, the candidate does not hand over OMR Answer Sheet to the Invigilator and goes away with any of the above documents (both the OMR Answer Sheets and Original Admit Card), his/her candidature shall be cancelled and criminal proceedings shall also be initiated against him/her.”

Despite the written instruction, candidates across several states told TOI that their UGC NET June 2024 exam admit cards were not retained. Instead, they were asked to carry them back.

Admit cards which contain an additional image, and thumb impression are collected with the purpose of cross-verifying which candidate had appeared and undergone the identity verification process. This is crucial for ensuring integrity and sanctity of the exam being conducted. After admit cards are collected, candidates can still check their scores using the roll number provided on their e-admit cards available on the UGC NET website. Additionally, candidates are required to fill in their details, such as name, roll number, exam centre, and signature on the test booklet containing the questions, which they can retain post-exam. This booklet is then countersigned by the invigilator.
Talking about carrying back the admit cards, Bhavya Jha, who appeared for the UGC NET June session 2024 for a second time, shared with TOI that everyone was asked to carry back their admit cards. Candidates raised the issue with the invigilator that it is mentioned in the guidelines for students to submit their admit cards. The exam authority responded saying “We have not received instructions to collect candidates’ admit cards, so we will not take it.”
With the examination authorities refusing to collect admit cards from candidates who appeared, many aspirants have this question in mind: Was the UGC NET exam already scheduled to be cancelled? Well, the answer remains to be found.
Notably, in today's Ministry of Education media briefing on the UGC-NET issue, Joint Secretary Govind Jaiswal stated that no one had complained about the alleged UGC NET exam leak, but the I4C had taken action. "We cannot arrive at any conclusion we have to examine the evidence. There are many people involved. We are taking prompt action so that no student's future is compromised," he said.
Jaiswal also added that the matter is handed over to the CBI for investigation. Adding to this he said that the Ministry got inputs from the I4C and had 'felt' that the exam had been compromised. "I want to reiterate the ministry is committed to ensuring student interest. It will not hesitate to act against anyone found to be involved in anything wrong," he said.