Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the formation of a special task force to overhaul the country’s examination system following weeks of nationwide protests over exam paper leaks.
The task force will be led by technology entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani, co-founder of Infosys and the man behind India’s Aadhaar digital identity system. Modi said the initiative aims to make the examination process more transparent, trustworthy and technology-driven.
In a video posted on Instagram, Modi also revealed that new legislation to tackle exam paper leaks would be tabled in Parliament on Monday. He said the proposed law would strengthen existing regulations and impose tougher penalties on those responsible for leaking examination papers.
The announcement came a day after Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned amid mounting public pressure. Youth activists had staged weeks of protests demanding his resignation following a series of exam paper leaks reported in May.
Although Modi did not mention Pradhan in his statement, the government has agreed to several demands raised by protesters, including implementing reforms to the examination system, dropping police cases against demonstrators and providing compensation to the families of students who died by suicide following the exam paper leak controversy.
The youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which organised the protests, announced that it was ending its demonstrations after the government accepted its key demands.
The latest reforms are expected to modernise India’s examination system and restore public confidence after the paper leak scandal sparked widespread concern among students and parents across the country.
