V Kamakoti, director of IIT Madras, who is part of the task force formed for NTA exam reforms, said that their aim is to make the exam process transparent, accountable and technically secure. He said that a system will be created in which everyone is accountable.
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [भारत]July 27 (ANI): IIT Madras director V Kamakoti, appointed to the high-powered task force for National Testing Agency (NTA) exam reforms, shared his views on the committee’s vision to strengthen the NTA. Speaking to ANI over phone, Kamakoti said the task force will focus on making the examination process of NTA more transparent, accountable and technically secure.
He said, “When I took the JEE exam in 1985, I wrote on paper and pen, in which about 4,000 students appeared. Today, one and a half million people write it. We have changed it to OMR and now it is computer based.”
Emphasis will be on technical and structural reforms
He further said, “My name has been announced in the multidisciplinary group of domain experts that will help in improving the NTA examination especially from the technical point of view and for structural reforms in the system. The examination system is evolving… The intervention of technology is extremely important to conduct the examination… The system should be transparent… If a student gets 90 marks, NTA has to explain how it was calculated. This is where technology is needed. There should be a structure where everyone is accountable.”
Accountability will be fixed at every level
Kamakoti suggested that every person in the hierarchy of examination should be held responsible. “To conduct an examination, a larger structure is required. Who is doing what part has to be reviewed. We call it structural organisation. There should be a structure where everyone is accountable so that the system is as foolproof as possible. That is what we would recommend.”
The director said the task force will strive to create a methodology that maintains this “trust” through accountability. “This world runs on trust. In this high-powered task force set up for the NTA exam reform committee, I was included because they trusted me; if I break their trust, it will be over. We will think of a methodology on how to make it trustworthy and accountable.”
PM Modi had announced the task force
The announcement comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced the formation of a high-powered task force on examination reforms to be led by technology expert Nandan Nilekani. PM Modi said the task force will submit a report and stressed the need for a “reliable” and “transparent” examination system with greater use of technology.
In a video message on Twitter, the Prime Minister said, “The Government of India is continuously taking various measures for the future of the students. Those who played with the future of the students are in jail. We have already set up fast-track courts. We are also moving towards making new laws in the Parliament which include stringent legal provisions. However, we have to look towards the future. Our examination system should be reliable and transparent, and there should be maximum use of technology.”
He further said, “Keeping all these factors in mind, we have decided to constitute a high-powered task force under the leadership of world renowned technology expert Nandan Nilekani. This task force will focus on examination reforms, and based on its report, steps will be taken at the earliest to ensure the credibility of the upcoming examinations.” (ANI)
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