Explained | Why NEET is more prone to paper leaks than JEE

With the cancellation of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test - Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2026 following alleged paper leak, a question has once again returned to the centre of public discussion: why does NEET repeatedly face large-scale paper leak controversies while the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main rarely sees a crisis of the same scale?

While both exams are conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) and involve lakhs of students, NEET and JEE operate through very different systems — from exam format and logistics to paper distribution and security architecture.

NEET is still offline, JEE is online

The most important distinction between the two is the mode of examination.

NEET-UG continues to be conducted in pen-and-paper mode for over 22 lakh candidates in a single shift across thousands of centres in India and abroad.

JEE Main, meanwhile, is conducted as a computer-based test spread across multiple shifts and days.

This difference fundamentally changes how vulnerable the exam becomes to paper leaks.

In NEET’s case, physical question papers have to be:

• Printed in massive quantities

• Packed and sealed

• Transported across States

• Stored in secure locations

• Distributed to thousands of centres simultaneously

Each stage creates another possible point of compromise.

Several experts and former officials have pointed out that larger the physical logistics chain becomes, the harder it is to guarantee complete secrecy.

In contrast, JEE Main’s computer-based format eliminates the need for mass physical paper transportation, reducing the possibility of question papers circulating in advance.

Single-shift exam

NEET-UG is conducted in a single shift with a common paper for all candidates nationwide. That means even a partial leak can potentially compromise the integrity of the entire examination.

JEE Main, on the other hand, is conducted across multiple shifts using different question sets and a normalisation system.

Even if one shift faces irregularities, the impact can theoretically remain limited to that session rather than affecting the entire country.

This structural flexibility is one reason why JEE-related controversies have usually remained localised.

Is JEE completely free of malpractice?

That does not mean JEE has been free from malpractice. However, the nature of controversies surrounding JEE has generally been different from that of NEET.

For instance, in 2021, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) uncovered a remote-access cheating racket linked to JEE Main. Investigators alleged that candidates at certain centres received outside assistance through manipulated computer systems and remote desktop software.

Multiple people, including technical facilitators and intermediaries, were arrested in the case.

The scandal highlighted vulnerabilities in computer-based examinations, but it was very different from a paper leak involving physical circulation of question papers before the examination.

In NEET’s case, investigations in both 2024 and 2026 involved allegations of question papers or matching “guess papers” circulating through coaching networks, WhatsApp groups, and intermediaries before the exam itself.

The logistics problem behind NEET

One of the biggest concerns repeatedly highlighted after NEET controversies is the sheer logistical complexity involved in conducting the examination.

NEET-UG 2026 alone involved around 22.79 lakh candidates and more than 5,400 centres.

The examination process requires coordination between printing presses, transportation agencies and storage facilities, which are usually outsourced by the NTA,

Moreover, involvement of local authorities, centre administrators, invigilators and outsourced personnel makes the matter even more complicated.

Several education experts and investigators have pointed out that outsourcing parts of the logistics chain, especially printing, packaging, transportation, and local centre management, significantly increase the number of people with potential access to sensitive examination material.

This becomes especially critical in a single-paper offline examination conducted simultaneously across the country.

The alleged NEET-UG 2026 leak investigation itself reportedly traced the circulation of “guess papers” through coaching centres, hostel networks, and Telegram and WhatsApp groups across multiple States before the examination.

Why NEET has not fully shifted online

Despite repeated leak controversies, NEET has still not transitioned fully into a computer-based test like JEE Main.

One major reason often cited by experts is the issue of standardisation.

NEET is heavily biology-based and highly rank-sensitive, where even one or two marks can drastically affect admissions into medical colleges.

Conducting the examination across multiple shifts with different question sets would require a complex normalisation process, something many students and experts fear could create fresh disputes over fairness and difficulty levels.

Infrastructure is another major challenge. Unlike JEE Main, which has a comparatively smaller candidate pool, NEET is taken by students from urban and rural regions across the country, many of whom may not have equal access to stable digital infrastructure or computer familiarity.

Recommendations made after NEET-UG 2024

Following the massive controversy surrounding NEET-UG 2024, the government constituted a high-level committee headed by former ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan to review the functioning of NTA and recommend reforms.

Several of the committee’s recommendations directly addressed vulnerabilities that are more prominent in offline examinations like NEET.

The committee reportedly recommended:

• Minimising outsourcing of examination staff and centres

• Conducting maximum entrance examinations online

• Introducing hybrid examination models where full CBT may not be feasible

• Implementing biometric and AI-based authentication systems

• Delivering encrypted question papers through secure digital systems

• Strengthening surveillance and monitoring mechanisms

• Establishing standardised and mobile testing centres

• Creating oversight systems for coaching institutes

• Considering limits on the number of attempts in major entrance examinations

Interestingly, several of these measures, such as CBT mode, biometric verification, AI-assisted monitoring, and encrypted digital question delivery, are already partly present in JEE Main’s architecture.

The repeated controversies around NEET have therefore intensified demands for similar structural reforms in the medical entrance examination as well.

With the recent 'paper leak' becoming the second major NEET controversy in three years since the 2024 leak scandal, pressure is now mounting once again on the government and the NTA to rethink the structure of the examination itself.

The central debate is no longer only about isolated leaks or arrests, but whether a single-day offline examination for over 22 lakh candidates can realistically remain secure in its present form.