Subject experts and insiders have alleged that the reckless use of artificial intelligence in setting and translating exam papers contributed to significant errors in the UGC-NET examinations. While the National Testing Agency has ordered fresh tests for English, commerce, and sociology, NTA Director General Abhishek Singh denied that generative AI was used to author the disputed papers and maintained that a human review process was in place.
Candidates reported numerous issues, including misspelt names of prominent scholars, garbled terminology, and the repetition of dozens of questions from previous years. Sources within the education ministry noted that the NTA delayed the cancellation of these flawed tests by six weeks, despite internal concerns regarding the ad hoc design of the papers and a lack of expert oversight.
The controversy has prompted scrutiny over the extent to which the NTA relies on automated systems for high-stakes national examinations. Critics are now questioning the level of human accountability in the process and whether automation was permitted to replace necessary academic judgement in determining eligibility for teaching and research careers.
