The National Testing Agency (NTA) has asked the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to collect information from government institutions on their IT infrastructure and available space to develop testing centres for computer-based examinations for NEET-UG next year, officials said.
AICTE has further asked government institutions approved by the council to provide details of their available information technology infrastructure and vacant or unutilised spaces for an assessment related to the establishment of Standard Testing Centres (STCs) across the country.
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“The centres of CBT cannot be outsourced to small private players and have to be chosen after assessment on strict parameters. AICTE, being the technical education regulator, has a lot of tech colleges which are equipped with the infrastructure,” a senior NTA official said.
The move comes amid an ongoing overhaul of the NTA, the nodal autonomous body that conducts NEET-UG and other entrance examinations for higher educational institutions, following the paper leak earlier this year.
Following the paper leak, which triggered nationwide outrage, the Centre announced that the medical entrance examination, NEET-UG, will be conducted in computer-based test (CBT) mode from 2027 instead of the pen-and-paper format.
“NTA conducts various national-level exams in CBT mode. With the progressive migration of examination modes and the requirement for a wider geographically distributed network of testing centres, NTA is assessing the availability of suitable infrastructure in government institutions across the country,” AICTE said in a letter to heads of institutions.
AICTE has clarified that the information is being sought only from government colleges and institutions approved by the council. The institutions have been directed to ensure that all details submitted are accurate, complete and properly verified by the competent authority before submission.
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The technical education regulator has also shared a format with institutions seeking details on the number of functional computers and other IT infrastructure, networking and internet connectivity, power backup, CCTV and related facilities.
Details about vacant or unutilised space have also been sought as part of the assessment for developing a wider network of computer-based testing centres.
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