New Delhi, Aug. 20 -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to come clear on its acceptance and implementation of the recommendations of the K Radhakrishnan committee, which was constituted in the aftermath of the NEET-UG 2024 controversy, along with a definite timeline, stressing that it was more concerned with institutionalising the National Testing Agency (NTA) than merely putting in place security protocols on paper. A bench of justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe directed the Union government to file an affidavit detailing the steps taken to implement the Radhakrishnan committee's recommendations, as "reflected and nuanced" by the high-powered task force headed by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani, and give indicative timelines for their implementation. The court directed the secretary concerned to file an affidavit within three weeks, detailing the steps taken to implement the Radhakrishnan committee's recommendations as reflected and nuanced by the Nilekani committee, along with indicative timelines. The order said its concern was the "institutionalisation of National Testing Agency with all necessary infrastructure, manpower and other technological capabilities." The court's intervention came as the Centre explained in detail the elaborate security measures currently employed by the NTA to prevent question-paper leaks, including multiple layers of question-paper selection, sealed transportation, GPS tracking, CCTV surveillance, police escort and one-time-use boxes that have to be physically broken open before the examination. But the bench said such measures were already part of the examination systems examined by the Radhakrishnan committee and the real concern was whether these safeguards could survive changes in personnel and evolve into a permanent institutional system. "All this was already under the purview of the Radhakrishnan committee," observed the bench, pointing out that the court had gone through the systems being developed over a period of time. It added that the committee had correctly identified the problem as systemic, requiring institutionalisation. "This process on paper, everything is good. But then one exam happens and by the time the second exam happens, it is a new picture altogether," said the bench, adding that it wanted to know what the NTA actually looked like as an institution -- how many officers it had, where its office was situated, how much staff and security it had and what infrastructure had been created. The observations assume significance against the backdrop of recurring NEET-UG paper leaks and the court's earlier concerns that merely shifting an examination online would not by itself eliminate the possibility of question-paper breaches. Solicitor general Tushar Mehta told the court that the Centre had accepted the Radhakrishnan committee's recommendations "in toto" and that steps were being taken to implement them. Mehta added that advertisements had been issued for several positions, including a technology officer, chief finance officer and general managers. The bench, however, sought details of whether the newly sanctioned senior positions had actually been filled and whether the NTA had a separate physical establishment and the requisite manpower. The court drew a comparison with the Union Public Service Commission, saying that an institution which conducts examinations regularly develops institutional memory and expertise over time. "Experienced persons get transferred. Then the whole experience goes. It must flow down to the next level and the next level so that they could pick up from the seniors. Institutional memory does not depend on individuals," it remarked. The bench also asked whether the NTA had a dedicated department and full-time officer for digital infrastructure, besides adequate testing infrastructure and research and development capabilities. The Centre informed the court that the NTA was setting up its own technology team with support from the National Informatics Centre and was onboarding professional teams as well as developing indigenous artificial intelligence models for translation of question papers. Mehta said that the NTA's question bank of 500 questions was translated into 13 languages, but the government was not relying on AI for the translation at present and was using human translators. "There was a breach and the people who were involved are arrested," he said. The bench also raised concerns over data security, asking whether the NTA had a sovereign database to store examination data and what sovereign software was being developed for the purpose. The court said security of question papers and storage of examination data required dedicated infrastructure and a database that was ready for use. The Solicitor General outlined the NTA's multi-layered process for preparing and transporting question papers to prevent leaks. A large question bank is first created by multiple moderators, after which a second set of moderators prepares four papers; the Director General then selects two, ensuring no single person knows the final paper. These are sent in sealed covers to printing presses under CCTV and CISF security, with the digital code to open the covers provided only upon arrival. The presses are closed to outsiders and the entire operation is video-recorded. Printed papers are jumbled, packed in tamper-proof boxes with unique identifiers, and placed in one-time-use iron trunks. Two sets are transported in GPS-tracked vehicles to separate bank strong rooms. On the exam day, the Director General informs the city coordinator which trunk to use; it is moved under police protection and video surveillance to centres. The final packet is opened shortly before the test in the presence of two students, with the process recorded for future reference. The bench, however, said the issue was not whether the procedures were elaborate but whether the NTA had the institutional capacity to continuously upgrade and enforce them. "You have to train and prepare the personnel for times to come, not just for one examination," the bench said, stressing the need for candidate-friendly arrangements, grievance mechanisms and strengthening of the agency's physical and intellectual capacity. The bench referred to the Radhakrishnan committee's recommendation for creating multiple dedicated verticals within the NTA, including testing centres, candidate experience, information security and digital infrastructure. The court also asked about the location and physical infrastructure of the NTA and whether it had the manpower required to operate as a specialised national testing body. The court also sought clarity on the role of the Nilekani task force, which was constituted last month to overhaul India's examination system. While the Radhakrishnan committee had focused substantially on NEET and strengthening the NTA, the Nilekani panel has a wider mandate covering the country's examination ecosystem and the statutory framework of the NTA. Its recommendations are aimed at making the examination system "robust, secure, transparent, trustworthy and future-ready", with emphasis on technologies such as AI and blockchain. The court asked the Centre to place on record whether the Nilekani panel had modified or "nuanced" the recommendations of the Radhakrishnan committee and the stage of implementation of both sets of recommendations. The petitioners pointed out that the Radhakrishnan committee had recommended moving towards computer-based testing and had identified the physical mode of examination as one of the weakest links in the supply chain because of the requirements of printing, transportation and storage. The Centre's earlier affidavit had said that the decision on shifting NEET-UG from pen-and-paper mode to computer-based testing -- whether in a single-stage or two-stage format - was under active consideration and would be taken after the benefit of the Nilekani task force's recommendations. Solicitor General Mehta told the court that the government was considering whether a human-based or purely digital system would be more foolproof. "Let the committee reflect on it and tell us," the bench said. The petitions have been filed by the United Doctors Front, Federation of All India Medical Associations and others seeking restructuring of the NTA and a stronger oversight mechanism to prevent recurring question-paper leaks....