‘Brokers’ call students, offer to fudge NEET marks

BENGALURU: While medical aspirants were often plagued with concerns of seat blocking in the past, a new problem has raised its head this time, even before results are out. Students are receiving calls from persons claiming to be representatives of National Testing Agency (NTA), the body that was in charge of conducting NEET efficiently from 2019, offering to manipulate their OMR sheets. Students are thereby assured of admission into their desired colleges by these persons.

This contradicts the standard procedure of admissions to medical colleges, which are only done on the basis of ranks obtained by candidates, and counselling by DGHS for seats under the 15 per cent All India Quota. Reports also started surfacing on social media about the same, casting aspersions on the credibility of the examination conducted by NTA to ensure efficient and transparent testing process of international standards.

“If these reports are true, then it is bad as each mark counts in NEET examination,” said S Sacchidanand, vicechancellor, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences. NTA officials, on the other hand, clarified that they do not have access to the phone numbers or email IDs of candidates, hence there is no communication by NTA regarding anyone’s result or rank at this point of time. The agency said that any communication about the score card and rank of the candidate is done through the official website www.nta.ac.in and ntaneet.ac.in.

It also clarified that its role ends with conducting the examination, while the declaration of results and provision of ranking comes under the purview of the Director General of Health Services (DGHS), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). NTA officials who took cognizance of the “unscrupulous elements”, have also lodged complaints with the police in this regard, and urged parents to file complaints in case such elements call them up.