NEW DELHI: A record 12 questions were removed from the final answer key of JEE-Main due to errors, marking the highest number of dropped questions in recent history. This has raised serious concerns over the National Testing Agency’s (NTA) ability to conduct a fair and transparent examination of such a large scale.
Despite reducing the total number of questions from 90 to 75, the error rate surged to 1.6%, well above the historical threshold of 0.6%. Adding to the concerns is NTA’s lack of transparency, with discrepancies in its reporting of the number of dropped questions, leading to suspicions of “under-reporting.” NTA Director General P S Kharola did not respond to inquiries from TOI. The Ministry of Education has since forwarded a reply from NTA, which failed to address concerns regarding syllabus discrepancies, further deepening doubts about the agency’s accountability.
Out-of-Syllabus Questions and Errors Deepen Trust Issues
An analysis of previous years’ answer keys contradicts NTA’s claims, showing multiple instances of error-free papers in the past. Before 2025, the highest number of dropped questions was six in Session 1 of 2024 and four in Session 2. In contrast, NTA’s official answer key for 2025 lists 12 questions as dropped. TOI’s investigation found that five questions were dropped in Session 1 of 2023, and in 2022, Session 1 and 2 had four and six dropped questions, respectively. Notably, no questions were dropped in the February and March 2021 exams. Despite these inconsistencies, NTA defended its process, stating that “this year’s record-low challenge rate and minimal errors reaffirm NTA’s commitment to ensuring a fair, transparent, and error-free examination process for engineering aspirants nationwide.”
Experts also pointed out that inconsistencies in language translations have further undermined the exam’s credibility. At least two translation errors were found in the final answer key, leading to confusion and incorrect answers being marked as correct. Students answering in Hindi and Gujarati had two answer choices, while others had just one, raising concerns about fairness. The inclusion of out-of-syllabus questions only added to the loss of confidence in the NTA’s reliability.
Student Frustration Grows Over Mismanagement
Educators and students have expressed frustration, arguing that the level of incompetence displayed in such a high-stakes exam is unacceptable. “In a prestigious exam like JEE, where students’ futures are at stake, such errors are completely avoidable,” one educator said. Errors, such as the dropping of a logic gate question from the 22nd Shift 2 paper after it was deemed invalid, and mistakes in Physics questions, caused further disruption. Additionally, translation issues and incorrect answer markings persisted.
There was also widespread dismay over out-of-syllabus topics. “For example, the Carnot Cycle, removed from the syllabus years ago, unexpectedly appeared in the paper. Similarly, Newton’s Law of Cooling, which has been excluded for the last two years, suddenly had 22 related questions. This misalignment between the syllabus and the actual exam content only added to the stress for students,” one educator lamented. “We expected a better paper this year—one without errors and irrelevant questions. Instead, we got a complete mess.”
Students also complained about losing valuable time on poorly framed or ambiguous questions, with some spending 10 to 15 minutes on questions that were either incorrectly framed or irrelevant to the syllabus, ultimately affecting their performance and rankings. One student put it simply: “It’s not just about dropping incorrect questions; it’s about the time we wasted on them. That’s a huge injustice.”
NTA’s Track Record Adds to Growing Doubts
The NTA has faced criticism for mishandling other high-profile exams, such as last year’s NEET-UG and UGC-NET, which were marred by allegations of paper leaks and irregularities. Given these past controversies, expectations for a more efficient JEE-Main 2025 were high. However, despite recommendations from the Radhakrishnan Committee, which categorized JEE-Main as a high-stakes exam, the agency appears to have repeated its mistakes. The committee emphasized that “questions created will have uncontested answers” to ensure fairness.
In light of these continued errors and mismanagement, the credibility of JEE-Main is facing serious challenges. With NTA’s ongoing lack of accountability, doubts about the integrity of the exam process are growing among students, educators, and experts alike.
