In a major decision that would impact 40 lakh students, the Union Cabinet on Friday approved the creation of a National Testing Agency (NTA) as an autonomous and self-sustained premier testing organisation to conduct entrance examinations for higher educational institutions.
The NTA would initially conduct those entrance examinations which are currently being conducted by the CBSE. All other examinations, like those conducted by the AICTE, would be taken up gradually by the NTA.
Apart from Class 10 and 12 board exams, CBSE conducts five other tests namely Joint Engineering Entrance (JEE), NEET, UGC’s National Eligibility Test (twice a year), Central Teacher Eligibility Test (twice a year) and the entrance test for Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas.
The exams will be conducted online. The NTA would be chaired by an eminent educationist appointed by the HRD Ministry. The Government said establishment of NTA will benefit about 40 lakh students appearing in various entrance examinations.
HRD Ministry officials said that NTA would be created as a Society registered under the Indian Societies Registration Act, 1860. “NTA’s entrance examinations will be conducted in an online method mode at least twice a year, thereby giving adequate opportunity to candidates to bring out their best,” said the official.
In order to serve the requirements of the rural students, it would locate the centres at sub-district and district level and as far as possible would undertake hands-on training to the students.
As per the proposal, the NTA CEO will be in the rank of a Director General to be appointed by the Centre and like all other autonomous institutions there would be a Board of Governors comprising members from stakeholder institutions.
To operate as a financially self-sustainable institute, the Centre would allocate a one-time grant of Rs 25 crore to NTA to start its operation in the first year. In view of the need to have a specialised body in India like the most advanced countries, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his 2017 Budget speech had announced setting up of a NTA.