UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — SC to seek guidance of task force on holding computer-based NEET

Q1. Consider the following statements comparing the high-powered task force on examination reforms announced in July 2026 with the high-level committee of experts constituted in 2024: 1. The 2026 task force is headed by a former founding chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, whereas the 2024 high-level committee of experts was headed by a former Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation. 2. The 2026 task force has seven members, which is one more than the strength of the 2024 high-level committee of experts. 3. The 2024 committee submitted its report in October 2024 with over a hundred recommendations, including permanent hiring at the National Testing Agency and creation of State- and district-level coordination committees. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The 2026 task force is headed by a former founding chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, whereas the 2024 high-level committee of experts was headed by a former Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation.
  2. The 2026 task force has seven members, which is one more than the strength of the 2024 high-level committee of experts.
  3. The 2024 committee submitted its report in October 2024 with over a hundred recommendations, including permanent hiring at the National Testing Agency and creation of State- and district-level coordination committees.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. Consider the following statements regarding the cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 as compared with the NEET-UG 2024 controversy: 1. NEET-UG 2026, held on 3 May 2026, was cancelled following a confirmed paper leak, whereas in 2024 the Supreme Court had declined to cancel the examination despite paper-leak allegations. 2. The cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 was ordered by the Supreme Court, unlike in 2024 when the decision on cancellation was left to the Union Government. 3. The pleas seeking dissolution or replacement of the National Testing Agency after the 2026 cancellation were filed by the Indian Medical Association, while the plea seeking a shift to computer-based testing was filed by a former Union Health Minister. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. NEET-UG 2026, held on 3 May 2026, was cancelled following a confirmed paper leak, whereas in 2024 the Supreme Court had declined to cancel the examination despite paper-leak allegations.
  2. The cancellation of NEET-UG 2026 was ordered by the Supreme Court, unlike in 2024 when the decision on cancellation was left to the Union Government.
  3. The pleas seeking dissolution or replacement of the National Testing Agency after the 2026 cancellation were filed by the Indian Medical Association, while the plea seeking a shift to computer-based testing was filed by a former Union Health Minister.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q3. 'Digi-Exam', among the examination-security reforms whose implementation the Supreme Court has been monitoring in the NEET-UG matter, refers to which one of the following?

  • A. A national repository of encrypted question banks maintained centrally for all examinations conducted by the agency
  • B. An online portal through which candidates submit grievances and seek re-evaluation of provisional answer keys
  • C. A biometric-based digital verification system for authenticating candidates at examination centres
  • D. A programme to equip examination centres in rural areas with computers for conducting tests online

Q4. The investigation into the leak of the NEET-UG 2026 question paper, whose progress figures in the proceedings before the Supreme Court, was taken over by which one of the following agencies?

  • A. The National Investigation Agency, which functions under the Ministry of Home Affairs
  • B. The Directorate of Enforcement, which functions under the Department of Revenue
  • C. The Central Bureau of Investigation, which functions under the Department of Personnel and Training
  • D. The Economic Offences Wing of the State police, which functions under the State Home Department

Q5. Which one of the following judges has been the presiding judge of the Supreme Court Benches that heard the batch of NEET-UG 2026 petitions in both May and July 2026?

  • A. Justice Alok Aradhe
  • B. Justice P.S. Narasimha
  • C. Justice Aravind Kumar
  • D. Justice Surya Kant

Q6. The National Testing Agency was brought into existence pursuant to which one of the following?

  • A. An Act of Parliament enacted in 2018 to regulate entrance examinations for higher education
  • B. A University Grants Commission resolution adopted in 2015 on common entrance testing
  • C. A notification issued in 2019 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development
  • D. A decision of the Union Cabinet taken in November 2017 approving its creation

Q7. Consider the following statements regarding the National Testing Agency: 1. It was approved as an autonomous and self-sustained premier testing organisation for conducting entrance examinations for higher educational institutions. 2. UGC-NET, JEE (Main) and NEET-UG are among the entrance examinations entrusted to it. 3. It was mandated to conduct all its entrance examinations exclusively in the offline pen-and-paper mode. 4. Every recruitment examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and the Staff Selection Commission was transferred to it upon its creation. Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. It was approved as an autonomous and self-sustained premier testing organisation for conducting entrance examinations for higher educational institutions.
  2. UGC-NET, JEE (Main) and NEET-UG are among the entrance examinations entrusted to it.
  3. It was mandated to conduct all its entrance examinations exclusively in the offline pen-and-paper mode.
  4. Every recruitment examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and the Staff Selection Commission was transferred to it upon its creation.
  • A. 1 and 2
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 3 and 4
  • D. 2, 3 and 4

Q8. Under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, which one of the following attracts the highest term of imprisonment prescribed for an offence?

  • A. Assisting a candidate in any unauthorised manner during the conduct of a public examination
  • B. Unauthorised access to, or leakage of, a question paper or answer key by an individual
  • C. Commission of an organised crime in relation to a public examination for wrongful gain
  • D. Tampering with the computer network or computer resources used in a public examination

Q9. Under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, an examination falls within the expression 'public examination' in which one of the following circumstances?

  • A. When it is conducted by any Central or State government body for recruitment or admission, irrespective of the conducting authority
  • B. When it is conducted by a public examination authority specified in the Schedule to the Act, such as the UPSC, SSC, Railway Recruitment Board, NTA and IBPS
  • C. When its result is used for admission to any institution funded wholly or partly out of the Consolidated Fund of India
  • D. When it is a recruitment examination of a Central government department or its attached offices, entrance tests being outside the scope

Q10. In its affidavit before the Supreme Court on shifting NEET-UG from pen-and-paper to computer-based testing, the National Testing Agency stated that the transition would be effected in consultation with which one of the following?

  • A. The Ministry of Education, Department of Higher Education
  • B. The National Medical Commission, Under-Graduate Medical Education Board
  • C. The Directorate General of Health Services, Medical Counselling Committee
  • D. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India

Q11. The high-level committee of experts on examination reform, whose compliance the Supreme Court has been monitoring in the NEET-UG litigation, was constituted in 2024 under the authority of which one of the following?

  • A. The Ministry of Education, Government of India
  • B. The Supreme Court, while hearing the NEET-UG 2024 petitions
  • C. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India
  • D. The Governing Body of the National Testing Agency