Nagpur: The alleged leak of the Maharashtra Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) question paper forced authorities to postpone Sunday’s examination barely a day before it was scheduled, leaving over 17,000 candidates from Nagpur in distress after months and, in some cases, years of preparation.The Maharashtra State Examination Council announced on Friday that the June 28 TET was postponed following the suspected paper leak. A fresh examination date will be announced separately. Candidates will not have to submit fresh applications or pay any additional fee. Following the council’s notification, the Nagpur Zilla Parishad’s education department informed all examination centres and officials to halt preparations for Sunday’s test.The postponement has affected 17,072 candidates who were set to appear from 35 examination centres in Nagpur district. Across Maharashtra, the examination was scheduled to be held at 1,028 centres.For thousands of aspirants, however, the postponement has meant much more than a delayed examination.Jayshree Deshmukh of Kamptee described the development as a major personal setback. Having resumed studies after delivering her baby, she spent the last six months balancing preparation with caring for her 6-month-old child while continuing her job. “I need to clear either CET or TET to ensure I don’t lose my job. It is disappointing that all the hard work will have to be redone when the new dates are announced,” she said.For 29-year-old Shubham Tikhait from Narsala, the disappointment comes after a much longer wait. Having completed his BEd over a year ago, he has been preparing for the examination for the past two years. “I am sad it could not be conducted due to the paper leak. We feel helpless. This is a crucial exam for us to survive,” he said.NGO Platform member Rajiv Khobragade demanded accountability at the highest level. “The repeated instances of paper leaks reflect a complete failure of accountability. Merely ordering an inquiry is not enough. The concerned minister must take moral responsibility and resign, or be removed from office if found responsible for administrative lapses. Unless accountability is fixed at the highest level, such leaks will continue, destroying the future of lakhs of honest aspirants,” he said.Atul Khobragade of Yuva Graduate Forum said, “The government’s policy towards the education sector is fundamentally flawed. It has no justification for asking teachers who have completed their graduation and BEd degrees and have already served as teachers for 20 to 25 years to prove their eligibility once again. If the TET is meant for fresh recruitment, there is no objection. But imposing such rules on existing teachers is nothing but harassment by the governmen .Therefore, the TET examination should not be made mandatory for teachers who have already been serving for years.“He added, “The BJP government is not sensitive towards the education sector. Even after what happened recently with the NEET examination, if question paper leaks continue to occur, it raises serious questions about the functioning of the government machinery. Instead of framing such rules to assess the eligibility of teachers who have served for 20 to 25 years, the government should focus on bringing transparency and reforms to the education system and assess its own eligibility.“
