NTS to hold most of CBSE entrance tests from 2018

NEW DELHI: National Testing Service (NTS) will conduct majority of tests conducted by Central Board of Secondary Education from 2018. Once the Cabinet's nod is given, the agency will start with the National Entrance Examination for Technical Institution (NEETI) for admission to engineering courses from January 2018.

According to sources, entrance tests for courses in higher education and other professional tests conducted by the CBSE will come under the NTS fold making it the country's largest exam conducting body.

Apart from Class X and XII Board exams, CBSE conducts five other tests which include Joint Engineering Entrance (JEE), NEET, UGC's National Eligibility Test (twice a year), Central Teacher Eligibility Test (twice a year) and the entrance test for Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas. While the Board exams are taken by over 27 lakh candidates, the four professional tests are conducted for nearly 40 lakh aspirants.


An official said, “The focus is on scientific professional online standardised examination and not the numbers.The ministry wants to declutter CBSE and the Indian Institutes of Technology so that they can focus on their key areas. The ministry wants CBSE to focus on the quality of school education, curricu lum and set standards.“

For now, the ministry is not planning to outsource the conduct of tests by NTS to any private agency . “To the extent possible it will be internal ... Rs 50 crore has been estimated for the infrastructure and rolling out of NTS. Around 3,000 centres will be needed and it will be mostly the Kendriya Vidyalayas as well as engineering colleges with good computer laboratory facilities,“ he said.

CBSE will, however, have some important role to play in the making of NTS. According to officials, the Board will be the resource centre for NTS and the testing agency will also “pick up large number of people who have been involved in conducting various examinations“.