President gives assent to bill aimed at checking malpractices in government recruitment examinations

President Droupadi Murmu has given her assent to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024. The Bill was passed by the Parliament in the recently concluded budget session.

The Bill is intended to prevent unfair means in the public examinations. Public examinations refer to examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission, Staff Selection Commission, Railway Recruitment Board, National Testing Agency, and Departments of the central government. 

The Bill intended to prohibit collusion or conspiracy to facilitate indulgence in any unfair means. Unfair means include, unauthorised access or leakage of question paper or answer key, assisting a candidate during a public examination, tampering with computer networks, conducting fake examination, issuing fake



admit cards and offer letters. 

The objective of the Bill is to bring greater transparency, fairness and credibility to the public examination systems and to reassure the youth that their sincere and genuine efforts will be fairly rewarded and their future is safe. Candidates as defined in the Bill will not be liable for action within the purview of the Bill and will continue to be covered under the extant administrative provisions of the concerned public examination authority. 

As per the provisions of the Bill, committed offence will be punishable with imprisonment between three to ten years, and a fine up from ten lakh to one crore rupees. All offences under the Bill will be cognisable, non-bailable, and non-compoundable.