Pondicherry University Postpones MBBS Exams Following Question Paper Leak, no revised schedule yet

Puducherry: Medical students are in a dilemma as the first-year MBBS examinations of Pondicherry University, which were scheduled to start last week, have been postponed due to a question paper leak. The university has not yet announced a revised schedule.

This postponement affects students enrolled in over a dozen government and private medical colleges affiliated with the university in Puducherry and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Students arrived at their respective examination halls on Friday morning only to learn that the exams were postponed. This decision was made after faculty members at a private medical college alerted the authorities about the leak, reports Times of India.

The assistant registrar (medical) sent a circular to the deans and directors of the affiliated colleges, notifying them of the postponement. However, the circular did not specify the reason for the delay. "...I am directed to inform that the examinations scheduled for the MBBS course for August 2024 session...are postponed due to administrative exigencies. The revised schedule will be intimated shortly. This may be brought to the notice of the students concerned," the circular said.

A university official, speaking on condition of anonymity, mentioned that the examination wing has frequently been in the news for negative reasons, hinting at ongoing administrative issues, reports the daily. "It has a lackadaisical approach in scheduling, conducting exams, and declaring results on time. On a couple of occasions, it didn't declare results of UG even after the last date for admission into postgraduate courses,” he added.

This year's NEET UG 2024 exam was also mired in controversies after a paper leak scam came to light. Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that around 13 people, including four examinees and their family members, were arrested in Bihar for their alleged involvement in the paper leak of the NEET-UG exam. Patna police sources had previously claimed that the NEET-UG question papers along with their answers were provided to around 20 aspirants a day before the date of the exam i.e. May 5, 2024.