UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Prime Minister announces constitution of high-powered task force on examination reforms
Q1. Nandan Nilekani, named to head the High-Powered Task Force on Examination Reforms (2026), is best known as the founding Chairman of which one of the following organisations?
- A. Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)
- B. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
- C. National Informatics Centre (NIC)
- D. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)
Q2. With reference to the 2026 High-Powered Task Force on Examination Reforms and its predecessor, the 2024 High-Level Committee on NTA reforms, consider the following statements:
1. The 2026 body was announced at the level of the Prime Minister, whereas the 2024 body was constituted by the Ministry of Education.
2. Both the 2026 task force and the 2024 committee were constituted by the Ministry of Education.
3. The 2026 body is designated a 'High-Powered Task Force', while the 2024 body was designated a 'High-Level Committee'.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The 2026 body was announced at the level of the Prime Minister, whereas the 2024 body was constituted by the Ministry of Education.
- Both the 2026 task force and the 2024 committee were constituted by the Ministry of Education.
- The 2026 body is designated a 'High-Powered Task Force', while the 2024 body was designated a 'High-Level Committee'.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q3. The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 applies to examinations conducted by the following bodies:
1. Union Public Service Commission
2. Staff Selection Commission
3. National Testing Agency
4. State Public Service Commissions
Which of the above is/are NOT correctly identified as covered by the Act?
- Union Public Service Commission
- Staff Selection Commission
- National Testing Agency
- State Public Service Commissions
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 3 only
- D. 4 only
Q4. Under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, a person convicted for an organised crime relating to a public examination is liable to a minimum fine of:
- A. Rs 1 crore
- B. Rs 10 lakh
- C. Rs 50 lakh
- D. Rs 5 crore
Q5. Which one of the following examinations did the National Testing Agency conduct in its first year of operation (2018)?
- A. UGC-NET
- B. JEE (Main)
- C. NEET-UG
- D. CMAT
Q6. The National Testing Agency functions as an autonomous body under which one of the following?
- A. Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education
- B. Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education
- C. Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship
- D. Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of Science and Technology
Q7. With reference to the 2024 High-Level Committee constituted to recommend reforms in NTA-conducted examinations, which one of the following is correct?
- A. It was headed by Dr. K. Radhakrishnan, a former Chairman of ISRO.
- B. It was constituted directly by the Prime Minister's Office.
- C. Its recommendations are legally binding on the Government in their entirety.
- D. It was set up as a permanent statutory body under the Act, 2024.
Q8. The reforms recommended by the 2024 Radhakrishnan Committee are to be operationalised primarily through which one of the following agencies?
- A. National Testing Agency
- B. Unique Identification Authority of India
- C. Central Board of Secondary Education
- D. Union Public Service Commission
Q9. Consider the following statements regarding the 2024 examination controversies:
1. The UGC-NET June 2024 was cancelled one day after it was conducted.
2. The UGC-NET June 2024 question paper was reportedly leaked on the darknet.
3. The alleged irregularities in NEET-UG 2024 were handed over to the CBI for investigation.
4. The UGC-NET June 2024 was conducted in computer-based (online) mode.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- The UGC-NET June 2024 was cancelled one day after it was conducted.
- The UGC-NET June 2024 question paper was reportedly leaked on the darknet.
- The alleged irregularities in NEET-UG 2024 were handed over to the CBI for investigation.
- The UGC-NET June 2024 was conducted in computer-based (online) mode.
- A. 1 and 4 only
- B. 1, 2 and 3 only
- C. 2, 3 and 4 only
- D. 1, 2, 3 and 4
Q10. The cancellation of the UGC-NET June 2024 examination was ordered on the basis of inputs received from which one of the following?
- A. National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit of the I4C
- B. Central Bureau of Investigation
- C. Intelligence Bureau
- D. Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In)
Q11. The Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a pillar of India's Digital Public Infrastructure, was launched in 2016 by which one of the following?
- A. National Payments Corporation of India
- B. Reserve Bank of India
- C. Unique Identification Authority of India
- D. Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
Q12. The Union Public Service Commission, which conducts recruitment examinations, derives its status as a constitutional body from which one of the following Articles of the Constitution?
- A. Article 315
- B. Article 324
- C. Article 280
- D. Article 148