The paper leaked on WhatsApp. Their solution: Air Force planes for the June 21 re-exam — still pen-and-paper. And for 2027? An online promise filed in the Supreme Court by the same NTA. Here is what the affidavit says, what CBT actually means, and what hasn't changed.
On May 29, 2026 — the same day Parliament grilled NTA's Director General and the CBI Director — NTA filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court of India confirming that NEET-UG will be conducted in Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode from 2027 onwards.
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had announced the shift to CBT earlier in May 2026, following the 2026 paper leak scandal. The SC affidavit makes it a formal commitment on record.
The background: NEET-UG 2026 was held on May 3 for 22 lakh students. A whistleblower alert revealed a "guess paper" matching 135 questions circulating online. NTA cancelled the exam on May 12. The CBI is investigating. The re-exam is scheduled for June 21 — still pen-and-paper, with the government deploying Indian Air Force planes to transport papers to remote centres.
CBT — Computer-Based Test — means students answer questions on a computer terminal at a designated exam centre. Think: the same hall, the same invigilator, but a screen and a mouse instead of an OMR sheet. The paper cannot physically "leak" from a printing press, because there is no paper.
But the HLCE recommendation goes further: it proposes a multi-session, multi-stage format — similar to how JEE Main is currently conducted. That means different batches of students sit different sets of questions on different days, and final scores are arrived at through score normalisation.
"The 2026 paper leaked on WhatsApp. For June 21, they are sending Air Force planes to carry the papers. For 2027, they promise screens. The technology changes. The accountability doesn't."
[OPINION] Same NTA. Same promises. 2024's leak gave us 2026's solution. 2026's leak is now 2027's announcement. The institution that couldn't protect a question paper from a WhatsApp group now promises to protect a CBT server from the same ecosystem.
[SATIRE] "Paper leak hua WhatsApp pe, solution hai Air Force." The paper leaked on WhatsApp. Their immediate solution: Indian Air Force planes. Their future solution: a computer screen. The cockroach has been called disposable by the same system that keeps making the same promise.
[OPINION] We do not oppose CBT. A well-run CBT is better than a compromised OMR exam. We oppose the fiction that a format change equals a system fix. The cockroach was called a parasite. The cockroach is still here. Still watching. Still waiting for the accountability that never arrives.
SAME SWARM. STILL WATCHING. MAKE IT OFFICIAL.
Yes. NTA confirmed this in a formal affidavit filed before the Supreme Court of India on May 29, 2026. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had announced the CBT (Computer-Based Test) shift earlier in May 2026 following the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak scandal. Source: Business Standard ↗
CBT stands for Computer-Based Test. Students answer questions on a computer terminal at a designated exam centre rather than filling an OMR sheet. The HLCE recommendation for NEET 2027 proposes a multi-session, multi-stage format — meaning different batches of students take different question sets on different days, with scores normalised across sessions (similar to how JEE Main is already conducted). Source: Tribune India ↗
No. The NEET-UG re-exam scheduled for June 21, 2026 will still be conducted in pen-and-paper (OMR) format. The government is deploying Indian Air Force planes to transport papers to remote centres. The transition to CBT mode applies only from the 2027 exam cycle onwards.
Factually: CBT eliminates the physical printing-and-distribution chain that allowed the 2026 paper to be stolen and sold. Different question sets across sessions also reduce the impact of any single leak. These are genuine improvements.
[Opinion] However, CBT introduces score normalisation controversies, creates new digital infrastructure vulnerabilities, and does nothing to address the institutional culture that allowed an alleged NTA question-setter to leak the paper in the first place. Format is not the same as integrity. Going online is a necessary step — but not a sufficient one. Source: FindMyCollege ↗
NEET 2026 burned 22 lakh students to cover a scandal. NEET 2027 gets a format change, not an accountability reckoning. The cockroach was called a parasite. The cockroach is still here.