Neaten the NEET process, else...

National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET, an all-India pre-medical entrance test, has had a chequered past. This year, a new controversy has hit the proverbial fan that questions the very fairness of the exam. A writ petition is before the Supreme Court contesting the 'arbitrary and illegal' decision of the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the exam, to award 'grace marks' to over 1,500 students to compensate for the 'loss of time' during the exam held on May 5. Two other pleas have sought cancellation of the test, alleging a paper leak. This is bad news for an already suspect grading system that does no good for India's educational-professional credibility.

On Tuesday, the court rightly told NTA that 'it's not so simple that because you have [conducted the exam], it's sacrosanct... The sanctity has been affected. So we need answers.' It issued a notice to NTA, but allowed the counselling process to continue. The next hearing is on July 8. While NTA has maintained that there has been no malpractice, GoI has set up a four-member panel to review the 'grace marks' controversy.

While conducting an exam of this scale - 24 lakh students appeared this year - is challenging, NTA has been conducting it for 10 years. By now, logistical and technical issues should have been ironed out. GoI must investigate this episode seriously. If left to fester, or brushed under the dari, there can be only two outcomes: one, bolster demand from states such as Tamil Nadu to scrap NEET; two, give credence to India's reputation of blindingly disregarding quality over quantity. This undermines India's ambition to become a knowledge economy with an upskilled workforce.