NEET UG Scam 2024: Digital lock failure at Hazaribagh centre increases suspicion amidst investigation

The digital lock on two boxes containing NEET 2024 question papers did not open at the Oasis School in Hazaribagh, and the invigilators had to cut open the box. It is suspected that the NEET-UG leak originated from this centre in Hazaribagh.

The NEET question papers are delivered to the centres with multi-level security provisions, and officials are instructed to adhere to the protocols to avoid any misconduct during the examination process.

What happened at the Oasis School?

The principal of the Hazaribagh school and the district coordinator designated by the National Testing Agency (NTA), Ehsanul Haque, told the Indian Express that the digital locks on two boxes did not open at 1:15 pm on May 5, and they had to use a cutter to open the boxes.

When the digital lock did not open automatically, Haque called the NTA to ask how to proceed. “Cutter se digital lock ko kaat do (cut the digital lock with the cutter,)" Haque was told.

Since Haque was the city coordinator appointed by NTA, he informed the officials at the other five centres in Hazaribagh. Vishwa Ranjan, NTA's observer and Imtiyaz Alam, superintendent at Oasis School confirmed this.

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When the digital locks don't open the standard protocol that the NTA follows is to cut them. “These are digital devices that can malfunction. It doesn’t necessarily mean these were tampered with,” an NTA official said.

Multi-level security provided while delivering question papers

The question papers are delivered to the respective centres in cardboard boxes with an aluminium box inside. The aluminium box has another cardboard box inside and that box has a seven-layered plastic envelope that contains the question papers.

Once the cardboard boxes reach the centre they are stored in a room that is heavily guarded. The boxes are kept under the vigilance of superintendents, invigilators, observers, etc.

Strict protocols need to be followed while unpacking the question papers. The entire process takes place in front of officials and two students who are randomly chosen. The officials use a sharp object to cut open the cardboard box. The aluminium box contains two locks- the manual one is opened using a key while the digital lock unlocks automatically 45 minutes before the examination.

Why do investigators suspect the Oasis School of the NEET 2024 leak?

During their investigation, the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Bihar found that the serial code of the leaked question paper matched with the Oasis School Centre, Hazaribagh. The officials took the boxes that had the question papers with them to investigate the case. They said, the stickers and latch on the box were not uniform, and the seven-layered envelope appeared to be tampered with.

(With inputs from agencies)