After releasing the JEE Main 2026 Session 2 provisional answer keys last week, the National Testing Agency (NTA) found itself at the centre of controversy, with students questioning its credibility and seriousness in conducting a national-level engineering exam. The agency issued the provisional keys on April 11 for exams held between April 2 and April 8, and opened the objection window for students.
Hours after issuing the JEE Main session two answer keys, students and educators posted on the microblogging site, X, that they had noticed errors in the Chemistry section of the exam that was conducted on April 5 in shift two.
Sudhir Tiwari, a student who appeared in the shift, said he was surprised by all the wrong answers in the Chemistry session. “In the January session, too, they released the incorrect physics and math final answer key. Is anyone responsible for verification?” said Tiwari.
Some students are facing challenges where none of the responses are recorded in the NTA-released provisional answer keys. Sanjeet Pandey, whose ward Kumari Aditi appeared for April 5, shift one in Sharjah, UAE, said, “My daughter has attempted 63 questions, and the same were displayed in the summary section while submitting the answers. However, none of the responses is recorded in the response sheet (attached). I have sent multiple emails, calls, and social media posts, but no luck till now. NTA has not even acknowledged any of my communications,” said Pandey. Aditi’s father also lodged a grievance on the public grievance portal.
Another parent, Manoj Kedia, whose daughter sat in the same shift, said her JEE provisional answer keys uploaded by NTA do not belong to her and do not match the question and option sequence, number of questions, and answers.
Narender Kumar, who is the zonal academic head at the Vidyamandir Classes, told indianexpress.com that when NTA released the provisional answer, students found that the answers to all 25 questions did not match. “Question ID and Option ID were matching; however, the provisional answer of shift two of the April 5 exam did not match. Every student was getting the wrong answer, which created panic among thousands of students across India, who appeared for the exam in the shift,” said Kumar.
Read | JEE Main April 5 Exam Analysis
Various students raised this issue; some students mailed NTA, said Kumar, adding that the matter was also highlighted on social media. “It was a technical error from NTA’s side, which they admitted later,” he said.
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Taking cognisance of the issue, NTA, in a post on April 12, asked students not to make any payments related to challenges for the Chemistry section of the JEE session two until an official clarification is issued.
“Reports regarding discrepancies in the JEE Chemistry paper (5 April, S2) have been noted on social media and are currently under verification. NTA regrets the inconvenience caused. Candidates are advised not to make any payments related to challenges for these until an official clarification is issued,” read the NTA’s post.
Hours after asking students not to make payment, NTA regretted the inconvenience caused to students. The post by the Agency asked the students to review the provisional answer keys of JEE Main 2026, Session 2, which is available on the portal jeemain.nta.nic.in. The Agency also paved the way for students to check and challenge questions, if needed, as per the SOP.
Read | UGC NET December Session 2025: Delhi HC orders NTA to form expert panel on final answer key errors
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The issue of JEE Main provisional answer keys comes a week after NTA released the revised results for the UGC NET December session. The revised results were released for History, Economics, Education, Commerce, and Hindi.
The Agency conducted the UGC NET exam from December 31, 2025, to January 7, 2026, with provisional answer keys released on January 14. The exam is conducted for eligibility for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), Assistant Professor, and admission to PhD programmes.
