India Bans Telegram Temporarily Before NEET Exam to Prevent Paper Leaks

The Indian government has temporarily banned the Telegram messaging app to prevent cheating and paper leaks ahead of the NEET UG retest. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology blocked access to the app across India until June 22 following a strict request from the National Testing Agency.

Authorities took this strong action because organized cheating networks were using Telegram channels to spread fake question papers and demand massive sums of money from anxious students. Officials also ordered the platform to completely disable its message editing feature until June 30. Fraudsters were heavily misusing this tool to alter old messages with real question papers after the exam to create false proof of early leaks.

The testing agency clarified that no real papers are available outside the secure system and urged all candidates to focus on their studies. While acknowledging the temporary inconvenience caused to normal users, the government stated this emergency measure is vital to protect the medical entrance exam.