Resignation of the education minister secures political accountability, but it is not a structural cure for paper leaks. True resolution requires systemic overhauls, such as deploying end-to-end encrypted, computer-based testing, overhauling the National Testing Agency (NTA) and establishing fast-track courts for exam fraud.
As nationwide protests led by student groups and political parties bring the national capital to a standstill, the demand for the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has sparked an intense debate over accountability.
While opposition leaders and protesting, the young agitators demand that the minister’s departure is vital to take moral responsibility for serial examination failures.
However, educationists and analysts maintain that a change in leadership alone will not fix the structural flaws in the educations and examination ecosystem.
Over several years, the integrity of major national examinations has been severely compromised by leaks, resulting in mass cancellations putting students into severe distress and a harsh public backlash that is being manifest in the current unrest spreading countrywide among the young population.
The Gen Z generation led by “Cockroach” movement, contend that repeated breaches represent a complete failure of the Ministry of Education to safeguard the future of millions of students. They view resignation as a necessary first step to rebuild some trust.
While the students are on a agitative path, government officials and supporters argue that resignation is merely a political distraction. To put an end to the paper leaks, experts suggest that administrative accountability must be paired with deep-rooted institutional reforms]
Transitioning traditional physically printed exam papers to highly encrypted needs to be replace by computer-based testing networks to eliminate human interception during transit, experts suggest.
Decentralizing examination boards and restructuring the NTA to include regional, highly secure testing centers and enacting stringent punitive measures for syndicate members, supported by dedicated fast-track courts for prompt trials and convictions in exam fraud cases can revamp the system they say.
The public debate continues as student unions push for permanent policy changes rather than stop-gap political fixes. Whether the government’s recent proposals of fast-track courts and administrative restructuring will be enough to quell the unrest remains to be seen yet.
Sanjay Dutta, an engineer by qualification but is a journalist by choice.
He has worked for the premier new agency Press Trust of India and leading English daily Indian Express.
With more than a decade of experience, he has been highlighting issues related to environment, tourism and other aspects affecting mountain ecology.
Sanjay Dutta lives in a village close to Manali in Kullu valley of Himachal.
