2500 CUET Retest Candidates From Oasis School, 'Missing Data', Lack of Transparency Raise Questions

Hazaribagh: The Hazaribagh school centre, Oasis Public School, previously scrutinized for an alleged NEET-UG paper leak, has resurfaced in the news. Out of the 1,000 CUET-UG aspirants set for a retest by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on July 19, 250 candidates are from this school. The retest is deemed necessary due to the distribution of question papers in incorrect languages and issues of "missing data" for some candidates, a source from NTA said.

The NTA announced the retest  on Sunday but did not address the ongoing delay in result declarations, which are already over two weeks late. Additionally, the final answer key has not been released. According to the official notification, grievances submitted by candidates up to June 30, along with complaints sent to rescuetug@nta.ac.in between July 7-9, have been reviewed. The re-examination for affected candidates will occur on July 19 in a computer-based test mode.

NTA said that it will conduct a retest for  ‘affected candidates’ who have mailed them their grievances about incorrect answer keys. However, some candidates who had raised their grievances to NTA via mail claimed that their mail was not considered and they were not eligible for retest. 

CUET Retest: Lack of Transparency Raises Many Questions

Surprisingly, the retest notification released by NTA did not specify the exact number of candidates and the specific reason or nature of grievances raised by the candidates. Moreover, NTA did not mention who is eligible to take the retest. The NTA source indicated multiple issues, including “missing data” for some candidates. The 1,000 candidates are spread across six states, with some grievances involving time lost due to the distribution of incorrect question papers. However, the lack of transparency has raised many questions.

This issue is reminiscent of the NEET-UG exam on May 5, where incorrect question papers were also distributed. The NTA initially granted grace marks for the lost time but later withdrew the results following opposition and pleas in the Supreme Court against the inflation of marks. A retest was then announced for 1,563 candidates, with 813 taking the exam on June 23.

Sources reveal that the NTA has been unable to retrieve data for some candidates. "Some data are missing, so these candidates will have to take the test again on July 19," said an NTA source, without explaining how the data was misplaced.

Candidates Raise Questions on NTA After Re-CUET Announcement

Soon after the NTA announced the conduct CUET retest, candidates raised questions on the agency. “NTA has lost its mind. There are a lot of students who were unaware that NTA can conduct the re exam for those students who have emailed them about their mismanagement in the exam center before June 30.#ScamAlert,” a candidate tweeted.

“There are many questions related to this and they have not answered any of them,” another one tweeted.

“Even though i have mailed concerned parties for #CUET #NTA mismanagement on 15th May english test. My mails have not been considered, and I am not eligible for CUET retest on 19th July,” another candidate claimed.

“NTA is a joke. 1.5 months later they are announcing CUET retests for candidates with supposedly genuine grievances. HAVE YOU BEEN SLEEPING FOR 50 DAYS?? AND WHEN WILL YOU DECLARE RESULTS?? There's so much anxiety and uncertainty around admission. It's kids ffs have some empathy,” another candidate posted.

This ongoing issue raises questions about the timeline for releasing results. Initially scheduled for June 30, the results were delayed due to allegations of paper leaks involving NEET-UG and UGC-NET. On July 7, the NTA released the provisional answer key for CUET-UG 2024, suggesting a retest if grievances were validated. However, the final decision on result announcements remains uncertain.