New Delhi (Gurpreet Singh): The National Testing Agency has terminated 47 officials and announced plans for legal and criminal proceedings against select personnel following the widespread controversy surrounding the NEET-UG examination. Operating as an autonomous body under the Union Ministry of Education, the testing authority is undergoing an extensive structural overhaul aimed at restoring institutional credibility, addressing administrative lapses, and reinforcing internal governance mechanisms.
To address critical staffing shortages and upgrade operational capabilities, the agency has initiated fresh recruitment drives for key leadership roles. Advertisements have been released for general manager positions covering assessment research, nationwide test centre operations, information security, and internal vigilance. Additionally, the NTA is onboarding 16 young professionals through the UPSC Pratibha Setu portal to modernize item bank development, enhance cybersecurity infrastructure, and strengthen investigative coordination with central agencies like the CBI and Enforcement Directorate under the Public Examinations Act, 2024.
The administrative restructuring comes shortly after official disclosures revealed that the testing body was operating with just 24 permanent staff members against 39 sanctioned posts. Having managed over 270 competitive examinations for more than 6.6 crore candidates since its establishment in 2018, the agency is now prioritizing capacity planning, digital forensics, and rigorous operational standards to prevent future examination malpractices across its multi-city network.
