NEW DELHI, Sep 27: The National Testing Agency (NTA), which shifted its operations to a new office following the controversy surrounding the NEET-UG paper leak and other administrative lapses, will now have CISF security to strengthen protection of its confidential areas.
The move follows the NEET-UG question paper leak, which triggered nationwide protests and raised concerns over the security and functioning of the examination system.
The NTA has shifted its confidential and sensitive operations from its previous office in Okhla to a newly allotted facility in the Government of India Press Building on Minto Road.
A senior official said the NTA has been allotted more than 55,000 square feet of office space, including the fifth floor and parts of the fourth and sixth floors. Confidential operations were shifted to the new premises over the past month.
The decision to strengthen security comes after investigation into the earlier paper leak highlighted shortcomings in access control and monitoring of confidential areas.
According to the investigation, subject experts allegedly had access to question papers without adequate checking or frisking while entering or leaving the confidential section. The investigation also pointed to the absence of a dedicated CCTV live-monitoring control room at the NTA office.
Under the new security arrangements, 39 CISF personnel have been deployed at the premises. They will oversee access control, screening and security at entry and exit points.
Security measures will include frisking, X-ray baggage screening systems and Door Frame Metal Detectors (DFMDs). Access to designated confidential areas will be strictly regulated and monitored.
The move is part of wider efforts to strengthen security around examination-related systems following repeated concerns over question-paper leaks.
A high-level committee headed by former ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan had earlier recommended enhanced security measures covering question-paper systems, candidate registration, admit cards, computer-based testing, OMR processing, result systems and other examination-critical infrastructure.
Following the latest paper-leak controversy, authorities are working on additional safeguards, including strict access controls, encryption, immutable logging and tamper-evident storage for examination-critical systems.
The NTA is also conducting security-readiness reviews of examination-support systems before each examination cycle. These include biometric authentication, face matching, CCTV infrastructure and live monitoring systems.
The agency is further strengthening its cyber-security preparedness for examination days through enhanced Security Operations Centre (SOC) monitoring and rapid-response mechanisms.
To strengthen information security, the NTA has also initiated the process of appointing a dedicated Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). Independent cyber-security audits by CERT-In and C-DAC-empanelled agencies are also being carried out.
The new arrangements are aimed at tightening physical, digital and operational security across the NTA’s examination infrastructure and preventing unauthorised access to confidential examination material.
