New Delhi: The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Saturday began a nationwide mock drill ahead of the NEET-UG 2026 re-examination scheduled for June 21, as authorities stepped up security measures to ensure the smooth and fair conduct of the test.

The exercise, which commenced at 9 am, will continue until late evening and involves the participation of more than 2.5 lakh security personnel across examination centres nationwide. Officials said all designated test centres have been placed under the NTA's control, with a three-layer security system being implemented at every venue to prevent malpractice and safeguard the integrity of the examination process.

As part of the enhanced security arrangements, paramilitary forces have been tasked with overseeing the transportation, storage and protection of question papers and answer sheets. More than 5,000 examination centres will remain under CCTV surveillance, backed by a large deployment of security personnel.

The preparations come a day after the Delhi High Court upheld the Centre's decision to temporarily restrict Telegram services across the country ahead of the re-examination. Rejecting a plea by Telegram FZ LLC, Justice Tejas Karia observed that the government had followed due legal procedure while invoking emergency blocking powers and that the restrictions were proportionate to the circumstances.

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The Centre had argued that Telegram had repeatedly been misused for examination-related fraud, with several channels allegedly involved in circulating fake NEET question papers and related scams. Authorities maintained that removing individual channels would not have been sufficient, as such groups and bots could quickly reappear.

The NEET-UG 2026 re-examination will be held on June 21 for more than 22 lakh candidates after allegations of question paper leaks surfaced following the original test conducted on May 3.