Did Nagpur student choose Abu Dhabi as exam centre? NTA clarifies what actually happened

After a NEET candidate from Nagpur was allotted an exam centre in Abu Dhabi for the June 21 re-examination, the National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday issued a clarification, according to a report.

The candidate, Abdullah Mohammad Talib, himself selected Abu Dhabi as his preferred exam centre using his own log-in credentials and after previewing it twice, according to an official cited by Hindustan Times.

Earlier, the candidate’s father Mohammad Talib said that though his son opted Nagpur as his preferred city, he was allotted Abu Dhabi as centre. “We are completely unable to send our child abroad for the exam. He does not even have a passport, and there is no time left to make travel arrangements,” the candidate’s father, Mohammad Talib, told ANI.

The modification made on May 21 was done using the same IP address, which was used to download the admit card for the May 3 examination, according to the official.

“Records show that on May 21, the candidate logged in and changed his examination city preferences, selecting Abu Dhabi as the first choice and Dubai as the second. The same IP address, traced to Nagpur, was used to download his admit card for the May 3 examination,” the Hindustan Times quoted the official as saying.

The same IP address was also used on May 24 to update bank details for a refund as well as on June 10 to access the city intimation slip and on June 16 to download the admit card for the June 21 examination, the official added.

The NTA said in an X post that the exam centre was changed to Abu Dhabi using the candidate’s credentials thrice and it was previewed twice that the centre is Abu Dhabi.

The NTA official told the news outlet that though the admit card was downloaded on June 16, neither the candidate nor his family contacted the NTA.

“Instead, his father approached the media on June 20, just a day before the exam. We are now allotting him a centre in Nagpur, but our cyber team is examining whether the changes were made by the candidate himself or by someone who may have gained access to his account,” the official said.

According to the NTA, the Nagpur incident was the only case in which a candidate was allotted a centre abroad. “We have accommodated requests from several candidates seeking changes in examination centres at the last minute,” the official clarified.