NEW DELHI: Having already crossed a total registration of 1.12 crore in the current year (January-October 2023), the National Testing Agency (NTA) is set to cross a total number of registration of 1.23 crore, thus becoming one of the biggest exams conducting body globally, second only to Gaokao of China, which recorded 1.29 crore registration in 2023.Attendance-wise, in 2022, Gaokao recorded 85% attendance, while NTA in 2023 recorded a cumulative 77.4% for the 34 exams it delivers.

However, for the entrance tests , NTA recorded a 2% higher attendance than its Chinese counterpart.

Another big difference is that while Gaokao conducts tests for nine subjects, NTA for SWAYAM alone conducts exams for 380 subjects.Another differentiator is that while Gaokao conducts exams for admissions to general universities and colleges, the NTA conducts entrances, recruitment as well as eligibility and certification exams, making it the most diverse exam conducting body.

In 2022, NTA recorded registration of around 85 lakh aspirants.Subodh Kumar Singh, director general, NTA said that by December end the total registration would cross 1.2 crore.“The complete technology-driven and advanced scheduling has helped NTA to conduct so many exams on time, announce results on schedule and deliver each exam securely,” said Singh.Singh added that a “set exam pattern”, coordination with different stakeholders and use of AI tools to monitor integrity while delivering the tests has been the key in scaling up its operations.“With the use of technology and AI tools we caught 26 impersonators in the recently concluded recruitment tests for Haryana government, where a total of 13.7 lakh candidates registered,” informed Singh.NTA is now all set for further diversification as it has been entrusted to conduct exams similar to that of the Civil Services Examination.“NTA has not been entrusted with tests like that of the UPSC for gazette officer rank level-10 pay scale posts.

We will be conducting the exams for the posts of examiner of patents and designs for the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT), ministry of commerce and industry in January 2024.

This exam will be delivered in three parts — prelim, mains and interviews by NTA,” said Singh.