Who are the members of Nandan Nilekani-led high-powered task force on NTA exam reforms?
In yet another move to address students’ concerns over paper leaks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the formation of a high-powered task force headed by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani to recommend reforms aimed at making the examination system more secure and leak-proof. The task force will ensure the examination system is trustworthy and will bring transparency through maximum use of technology.
The Prime Minister made the announcement on Sunday (July 26), a day after the 36-day agitation, led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), ended with the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as the Education Minister.
Members of the Nandan Nilekani-led task force
The high-powered task force on examination reforms led by Nandan Nilekani has six members, including experts from technology, space, intelligence, academia and public administration. The members are:
- Nandan Nilekani: Co-founder of Infosys and former UIDAI chairman
- Dr S Somanath: Former Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
- Tapan Deka: Former Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB)
- Prof. V Kamakoti: Director of IIT Madras
- Anita Karwal: Former Education Secretary, Government of India
- Amrit Lal Meena: Logistics and public administration expert
Who is Nandan Nilekani?
Nandan Nilekani is a tech expert and a co-founder of the tech giant Infosys. He is currently serving as the non-executive chairman of the tech platform. Nilekani co-founded Infosys along with NR Narayana Murthy, Kris Gopalakrishnan, SD Shibulal, K Dinesh, NS Raghavan and Ashok Arora in 1981.
Nilekani served as the CEO of the tech giant from March 2002 to April 2007 before relinquishing his post for Gopalakrishnan. However, he returned to Infosys in 2017 and became the non-executive chairman in August 2017. Before taking over as the CEO in 2002, he served in different positions like the managing director, president, and chief operating officer.
Nilekani left Infosys in 2009 and became the first chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India after an invitation from the then Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. Notably, the Infosys co-founder has also contested in the 2014 General elections. He fought on the Congress ticket from the Bangalore South constituency but lost out to Bharatiya Janata Party’s Ananth Kumar.
All about the task force
The panel will submit recommendations for immediate measures to strengthen the security of upcoming examinations. Its key mandate will be to overhaul India’s national examination and testing systems and make them more secure, transparent and resistant to paper leaks.
The government is expected to implement the recommendations of the task force to build greater trust in the examination system and enhance transparency through the extensive use of technology. The panel will also explore ways to maximise the use of advanced technological solutions to create a future-ready examination framework that is secure, efficient and reliable.
