NTA told MPs the NEET-UG paper was not leaked through its system and said the CBI is probing the issue.
Officials informed the panel that a common entrance test replacing JEE and NEET is under consideration.
NTA said reforms, including CBT-based exams and stricter safeguards, are being planned to prevent malpractice.
Top NTA officials were questioned by several members of Parliament on Thursday. The director general of the organisation informed them that the CBI is looking into the situation and that the NEET-UG paper was not leaked through their system, according to sources.
At a hearing of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth, and Sports, several Members of Parliament questioned representatives of the National Testing Agency (NTA) about the measures they had taken to improve the exam system and prevent future paper leaks.
The NTA argued at a parliamentary panel meeting that the reasons for conducting re-test of NEET-UG 2026 was not a case of a paper “leak” and that there were irregularities and malpractices that came to light. MPs of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also opposed the use of the word “paper leak” to refer to the recent irregularities during the meeting.
A proposal to introduce a common entrance test for engineering and medical admissions is under consideration, senior officials informed a parliamentary standing committee.
The proposed exam could replace JEE and NEET, with separate sections for engineering and medical aspirants under a unified framework. The government is also reviewing age criteria and attempt limits for medical candidates as part of broader exam reforms aimed at improving security and curbing malpractice.
Top education ministry officials, including Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, had been called before the panel. The Radhakrishnan Report's suggestions for agency reforms were presented in detail by NTA officials, including Director General Abhishek Singh and Chairperson Pradeep Kumar Joshi.
According to the PTI, Singh denied using their technology to leak the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) paper in response to questions from the MPs.
At this, several MPs asked him how the paper got leaked, why the exam was held and why a retest was held.
The NTA DG reportedly stated that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is investigating the issue.
Some members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are opposed to some opposition MPs' demands that the probe report be brought before the panel, arguing that the CBI should be allowed to carry out its duties as an independent organisation.
The sources said Singh gave a detailed presentation on the implementation of the steps recommended by the Radhakrishnan Report on NTA reforms and informed that around 70 per cent of the short-term measures suggested have already been implemented.
The NTA officials told the members of the panel that steps are being taken to evolve a foolproof examination system, and a comprehensive review is being conducted. They also said credible people should be involved in the paper setting and distribution system.
The NTA officials said holding the NEET through a computer-based testing (CBT) platform is being considered, and future exams could be conducted through this mode.
The MPs are learnt to have raised the issue of a shortage of staff and filling vacancies in the NTA to ensure that the agency functions efficiently and leakages are prevented.
The sources said the NTA informed the members of the committee that there is a staff shortage of around 25 per cent in the agency currently, and steps are being taken systematically to fill all such vacancies to plug any loopholes.
After the meeting, the chairperson of the parliamentary panel, Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, said, "Whatever discussions happen in the parliamentary committee, we are under oath, and we cannot discuss it." He later said, "The meeting went off very well. We got inputs from all the members. The members expressed their concerns over the NEET paper leak."
In an earlier statement outlining the actions taken by the NTA and the government to prevent breaches and malpractices, the agency's officials stated that stakeholders have received comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) and checklists for breach management in both PPT and CBT modes, and that the partnership formed with the state or district administrations for carrying out high-stakes examinations and reporting malpractices is being actively monitored on social media platforms.
The panel was notified by the NTA that it administered the NEET (UG) 2026 on May 3 at 5,432 locations across 565 cities, including 14 places overseas. Over 22.7 lakh applicants enrolled for the exam, which was administered in 13 languages, and over 22.05 lakh of them took it.
The medical-entrance exam was cancelled recently amid allegations of paper leak. A retest is scheduled to be held on June 21.
