CUET-UG 2026: NTA to re-conduct exam for candidates affected by technical glitch

The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday announced that candidates affected by a technical disruption during the Common University Entrance Test (CUET-UG) 2026 will be given another opportunity to appear for the examination.

The announcement came after a technical issue disrupted the conduct of the exam at several centres during the first shift on May 30, causing delays and uncertainty for thousands of candidates.

The CUET-UG is a national-level entrance examination used for admission to undergraduate programmes in central, state and several private universities across the country.

In a statement issued on social media, the NTA acknowledged the inconvenience caused to students and said affected candidates would not be disadvantaged because of the disruption.

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The agency clarified that candidates who completed biometric registration and were present at their examination centres but could not complete the test due to the technical problem would be allowed to take a rescheduled examination.

Re-exam for affected candidates

According to the NTA, most candidates were eventually able to complete their examinations after the system resumed functioning. However, around 3,765 candidates who had reported to their centres and completed biometric verification chose to leave before the examination restarted.

The agency said that these candidates would be given a fresh opportunity to take the exam as a one-time measure. Details regarding the new examination date and other arrangements will be announced separately.

NTA also apologised for the anxiety and inconvenience caused by the disruption and urged students to rely only on official channels for updates regarding the examination.

Technical review ordered

The agency said that its technology service provider, TCS iON, has been directed to conduct a detailed root-cause analysis of the incident and submit a report at the earliest. The findings are expected to identify the reason behind the disruption and prevent similar issues in future examinations.

The CUET-UG has been conducted in a computer-based test (CBT) format rather than a pen-paper mode, a shift that the NTA said was aimed at improving standardisation, operational efficiency and management of the nationwide examination process.

Exam has faced disruptions before

Since its introduction in 2022, CUET-UG has become one of India's largest entrance examinations. However, the exam has faced several operational challenges over the years, including last-minute changes in examination centres, delays in starting tests, server-related issues and technical failures at some venues.

In certain instances, examinations have been cancelled or rescheduled due to technical problems, requiring affected candidates to reappear for the test.

The latest disruption has once again highlighted the challenges of conducting a large-scale computer-based examination across multiple centres nationwide.