From NEET paper leaks to the CBSE’s digital fiasco, India’s examination system appears to be confronting a major crisis of competence and credibility. For generations of our countrymen, examinations have been the principal mechanism through which talent, discipline and hard work could overcome social circumstance. In a country where millions compete for limited opportunities, examinations serve as the foundation of meritocracy. When that foundation begins to crack, the conseq

While India’s examination system has suffered leaks before, the cancellation of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) UG 2026 affecting more than 22 lakh students, represents the industrialisation of academic fraud. It signifies that former instances of isolated cheating have now acquired the architecture of organised crime. The details emerging from the investigation are alarming not merely because a question paper was leaked, but because of the sophistication wi