It has not been a great week for India. The controversies surrounding two entrance-level examinations – NEET-UG and UGC-NET – have stunned the country. The ‘question paper leak’ scandal has brought the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the exams on behalf of the University Grants Commission (UGC), to the centre stage.
India saw another train tragedy this week as at least 10 people died and over 40 were wounded after a goods train collided with the Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express near Rangapani station in West Bengal.
The deadly heatwave in Delhi also grabbed headlines again amid the water crisis in the city.
As we wrap up the week, here’s a round-up of the stories in India to keep you up-to-date with the important developments.
1. The NEET 2024 exam is mired in controversy. The entrance exam, conducted by the NTA, is for students seeking admission to undergraduate medical courses in medical institutions. While the exam was held in May, the results declared on 4 June created a huge uproar among students with allegations of paper leak coming to light. Grace marks to 1,500 students and a steep rise in merit further posed questions.
Several arrests have been made, including aspirant students, in the NEET paper leaks case. The matter is currently in the Supreme Court.
The heat over the NEET issue was not over when another row erupted as the education ministry itself cancelled the University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) examination after lakhs of students had appeared for it. The Opposition, which has been targeting the government over the NEET row, further increased the pressure.
As NTA has come under the scanner, here’s
our story
on the autonomous body and its record.
2. The train accident in West Bengal evoked tragic memories of the incident last June when over 288 passengers lost their lives in the ghastly train accident in Odisha’s Balasore district. The collision involving the Sealdah-bound Kanchanjunga Express and a goods train also triggered questions about the lack of deployment of the anti-collision system
Kavach
.
Despite the Centre investing tens of billions of dollars in the Railways, why do train-related deaths continue happening? What about the safety measures? Read
our explainer
to find out.
3. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s respite was short-lived. A day after he secured bail from a trial court in a money laundering probe related to the Delhi excise policy case, the Delhi High Court stayed his release from jail till next week. This came after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) approached the High Court on Friday (21 June), challenging the bail order.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, who has been in Tihar jail since April, had walked out of prison last month to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. The lower court’s release order was a big relief for Kejriwal and his party, especially after the AAP’s dismal performance in the general elections. We explain in
our story
why bail is significant for the Delhi CM and his party.
4. It was not all gloomy this week in India. Maharashtra has a reason to rejoice as it is set to get a new major port. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has green-lit the development of an “all-weather greenfield deepdraft major port” at Vadhavan, located around 130 kilometres from Mumbai.
The port, which will cost Rs 76,200 crore, will “boost economic progress and also create employment opportunities on a large scale”, Modi said on X. Here’s
our report
on why the Vadhavan Port can be a game-changer for India.
5. The brutal heatwave has killed dozens of people in Delhi. Until Thursday, The National Capital had been witnessing temperatures above 40 degrees Celsius for days.
It was not just daytime temperatures baking Delhi but also warm nights that were increasing people’s woes. Delhi reported its warmest night in at least 12 years, with the mercury touching 35.2 degrees Celsius on Tuesday. Experts have raised alarm about the city experiencing warm nights after scorching throughout the day. Read
our story
to find out why high nighttime temperatures are a cause of concern.
6. Weeks after the Pune Porsche case, another high-profile hit-and-run incident came to light, causing outrage among people. The daughter of a YSR Congress Party Rajya Sabha MP has been accused of driving her BMW over a man sleeping on a footpath in Chennai.
While the man succumbed to his injuries, Madhuri, the daughter of Rajya Sabha MP Beeda Masthan Rao, got bail. Here’s
our story
on what occurred and why she secured bail.
That’s it from us this week. If you like the way we explain topics, you can
bookmark this page
to stay updated.
Link to article –
This Week in Explainers: Why NTA is facing heat over NEET, NET paper leaks
