Bill To Prevent Exam Malpractices To Be Tabled In Parliament Today (Photo by Nguyen Dang Hoang Nhu on Unsplash)
The Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, will be tabled in Parliament today, February 5. The Bill aims to address the problem of unfair practices in various examinations, including university exams and central agency competitive exams.
According to the Economic Times, the Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions, Dr Jitender Singh, will introduce the significant Bill in Parliament today. The report, citing sources, also said that the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, will cover entrance examinations held by the Staff Selection Commission, Union Public Service Commission, the Railways, and banking recruitment examinations. It will also include all computer-based examinations conducted by the National Testing Agency.
As per the new Bill, people involved in malpractices, including leaking question papers of recruitment exams, may land in jail for up to ten years. According to a Hindustan Times report, the draft legislation proposes a minimum of 3-5 years in jail for people responsible for leaking exam papers, and it would go up to 5-10 years in prison in cases by organised syndicates. The Bill also proposes a fine of up to Rs 1 crore, and investigations to paper leaks should be conducted by an officer not below the rank of deputy superintendent of police or assistant commissioner of police, reported Hindustan Times.
While addressing a joint sitting of Parliament at the beginning of the Budget session on January 31, President Droupadi Murmu said that the central government has decided to enact a new law to deal sternly with malpractices and irregularities in examinations. Notably, Centre is making this move amid the cancellation of a series of competitive tests due to question paper leaks. Recently, the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) postponed the State General Graduate Level Combined Competitive Exam (JSSC CGL) due to alleged paper leaks.
