Shimla, May 21 -- Pushing for stricter safeguards and technology-driven systems, education minister, Rohit Thakur said that national-level examinations like NEET should gradually shift to a fully computer-based testing system to curb paper leaks and ensure transparency. The NEET-UG 2026 examination was cancelled earlier this month after allegations of a question paper leak. It has been rescheduled for June 21. Terming recent paper leak incidents across the country "very unfortunate," Thakur called for stricter safeguards and said that technology-driven systems were needed to restore confidence among students. Speaking to HT, Thakur said that national-level examinations like NEET should gradually shift to a fully computer-based testing system to curb paper leaks and ensure transparency. "Himachal Pradesh has already adopted computer-based recruitment examinations for several posts in the education department," said Thakur on Wednesday. "Computer-based tests are the way forward. In Himachal, most recent recruitment examinations, including JBT and TGT recruitments, have already been conducted through computer-based systems to ensure transparency and prevent unfair practices," he said.The minister said lakhs of students across the country had been affected by repeated controversies surrounding competitive examinations, including NEET, and governments must act seriously to prevent such incidents in future. He said the state government believed in a zero-tolerance policy against examination malpractices and recruitment irregularities.Elated over the latest Performance Grading Index (PGI) rankings for school education, in which Himachal Pradesh secured third position among 28 states and sixth overall including union territories, Thakur said the rankings reflected improvements in learning outcomes, infrastructure, governance and accountability within the education department. "From 21st rank in 2022, Himachal Pradesh first improved to 18th, then 13th, and now to third position among states. This reflects the reforms undertaken in the education sector," he said. He attributed the improvement to measures such as school consolidation, filling vacant posts, teacher training programmes and regular departmental monitoring. The minister said over 1,100 teachers had undergone training during the current government's tenure, while around 8,000 appointments had been made in the education department and recruitment for nearly 6,000 more posts was underway. Thakur said the government's broader objective was to ensure there was no major difference between private and government schools in terms of educational quality and facilities. "Our vision is to provide 21st-century quality education in government schools and further strengthen Himachal Pradesh's reputation as a leading education state," he added. Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu congratulated the state on securing the sixth position in the country in providing quality school education, as per the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 report released by the Ministry of Education. Sukhu said that this success has been made possible due to various reforms introduced by the present Congress government in the education sector, with a focus on quality education, teacher training and expansion of school facilities. He alleged that the previous BJP government mainly focused on opening schools without adequate budget or staff, whereas the Congress government is focusing on quality education so that students studying in villages can also receive better educational opportunities. He alleged that the previous BJP government neglected the education sector, which led to a decline in the standard of education in the state....