Tight Security and Air Force Deployment as Students Resit Medical Exam

Millions of hopeful medical students across India are resitting a crucial exam under unprecedented security, after the first paper was cancelled following allegations that the questions had been leaked.

Nervous students were met with biometric identification checks, metal detectors, armoured patrols and frisking at exam centres on Sunday morning.

Leaving nothing to chance this time, the Indian Air Force transported the new test papers to some regions, while police and paramilitary officers were deployed at the 5,440 exam centres across the country.

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), known as NEET-UG, is required for students to join medical colleges in India.

Of the millions who take the exam every year, only a small percentage do well enough to secure a coveted college placement.

Nearly 2.28 million candidates sat the exam on 3 May, having studied for months - in some cases years - for the notoriously difficult paper.

The news that it had been scrapped was devastating for many students, and the scandal sparked widespread protests and demands for Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign.

He did not, and told students before Sunday's exam: "Sit fearlessly, without worry, and you will definitely do well."

- Author: Tiffany Wertheimer, BBC

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