NEW DELHI — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Sunday the creation of a special task force aimed at overhauling the country’s national examination system, a move that follows weeks of protests by young people outraged over leaked exam papers.
The task force will be led by tech entrepreneur Nandan Nilekani, who is widely known for spearheading the development of India’s digital identity system called Aadhaar and for co-founding the major software company Infosys.
Modi made the announcement via Instagram, stating that the country’s testing system needs to be more trustworthy and transparent. “Our examination system should be trustworthy, should be transparent and the system should make maximum use of technology,” he said, also noting that new legislation targeting paper leaks would be brought before parliament on Monday.
Modi added that the proposed measures would strengthen existing laws and increase penalties for those found responsible for leaking exam materials.
The announcement marked Modi’s first public statement on the matter since Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on Saturday. Pradhan stepped down following sustained pressure from youth activists who had been demonstrating for weeks, demanding his resignation over exam paper leaks that occurred in May. Modi did not reference Pradhan by name in his 30-second video message.
The youth-driven movement known as the Cockroach Janta Party, or CJP, which organized and led the demonstrations, called off its protests Saturday after it determined its key demands had been addressed.
In addition to forming the task force and pursuing new legislation, the government agreed to several other concessions sought by the protesters, including dropping criminal charges filed against demonstrators and providing compensation to the families of students who died by suicide in the aftermath of the exam paper leaks.
