Summary
- According to a report by the Financial Times, Indian authorities have imposed a temporary ban on Telegram until June 22.
- According to the National Testing Agency (NTA), certain Telegram channels were allegedly offering access to examination papers in exchange for money.
- The temporary restriction is expected to remain in place until June 22 as authorities attempt to safeguard the upcoming examination process.
New Delhi – Examination papers being leaked online before major exams is a common issue in many countries. However, India has taken the unusual step of temporarily restricting the messaging app Telegram in an effort to prevent further exam leaks.
According to a report by the Financial Times, Indian authorities have imposed a temporary ban on Telegram until June 22. The move is linked to concerns surrounding the integrity of a major medical entrance examination scheduled for June 21. India is Telegram’s largest market with approximately 84 million users relying on the messaging platform.
Earlier, on May 3, around 2.28 million students appeared for the NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test), the country’s highly competitive medical school entrance examination. During the process, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) introduced an on-screen marking system aimed at improving the evaluation of millions of answer sheets.
However, the new system soon became controversial after students reported discrepancies and errors in their results. As a result, on May 12, the Indian government annulled the examination results and launched an investigation.
The inquiry reportedly found that a significant portion of the exam paper had been leaked on Telegram before the test was conducted.
According to the National Testing Agency (NTA), certain Telegram channels were allegedly offering access to examination papers in exchange for money. The decision to block Telegram has drawn criticism from digital rights advocates.
The Internet Freedom Foundation argued that banning the platform is an inappropriate response to exam fraud stating that the government has effectively punished millions of legitimate Telegram users instead of targeting the individuals responsible for leaking the papers.
The temporary restriction is expected to remain in place until June 22 as authorities attempt to safeguard the upcoming examination process.
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