GUWAHATI: The National Testing Agency (National Testing Agency) on Tuesday, June 16, imposed temporary restrictions on Telegram in India until June 22 ahead of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination, stating that the move is aimed at curbing organised cheating attempts and safeguarding the integrity of the examination process.
ALSO READ: NEIINFRA 2026 Begins in New Shillong With ₹39,800 Crore Highway Push in Meghalaya
According to an official statement, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology), acting on recommendations from the NTA, has issued a temporary direction under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, restricting access to Telegram in India for the examination period and its immediate aftermath.
In addition, Telegram has been directed to disable its message-editing feature in India until June 30. The NTA said the decision addresses concerns that the feature was allegedly misused to fabricate post-examination “paper leak” evidence by editing older messages while retaining original timestamps.
The agency said the measures were introduced in the interest of public order following what it described as organised misuse of the platform by cheating networks targeting candidates appearing for the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination scheduled for June 21.
The NTA credited the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, under the Ministry of Home Affairs, for coordinating action against Telegram-based fraud and misinformation networks. It said the agency acted on inputs from NTA, state police units, and its own monitoring systems to facilitate the takedown of multiple channels, groups and bots allegedly involved in misleading candidates.
According to the statement, platform-wide intervention was considered only after targeted removals of individual channels failed to deliver sufficient compliance ahead of the examination.
The NTA further alleged that several Telegram channels, operating under names suggesting leaked question papers or re-examination claims, had been demanding payments ranging from a few thousand rupees to several lakh rupees in exchange for purported access to NEET papers. It reiterated that no examination paper exists outside the secured examination process and termed such claims fraudulent.
Explaining the restriction on Telegram’s editing feature, the agency said it had been misused in earlier instances to alter old messages after examinations and insert question paper content, creating misleading records intended to appear as pre-exam leaks.
The statement also referred to enforcement actions and advisories issued by state authorities against cyber-fraud networks operating through Telegram channels.
Acknowledging potential inconvenience to legitimate users, the NTA clarified that the access restriction is limited to the examination period, and that the temporary suspension of the editing feature does not affect normal messaging services.
The agency reiterated that the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination will be conducted as scheduled on June 21, and said the measures are intended to ensure a fair, secure and credible examination process.
Candidates and parents have been advised to avoid unverified information circulating online and rely only on official communication channels for updates.