UGC NET June 2026: NTA to reconduct English, Commerce, Sociology exams in Sept

The National Testing Agency (NTA) will reconduct the UGC NET June 2026 examinations for English, Commerce and Sociology after a committee found multiple errors in the question papers.

The NTA said it received several complaints about the three papers and formed a committee to examine the reported issues. The committee recommended reconducting the examinations to ensure a fair and error-free assessment.

As per the committee's report, "The three papers had many factual, typographical, translation errors including misspelt names of prominent scholars, garbled book titles, errors in the stem wording of questions, grammatical errors, gender and number agreement errors, punctuation mistakes, and non-standard coined terms for established concepts, as well as repetition of a significant number of questions previously administered.”

The UGC NET June 2026 examinations were held from June 22 to June 30, with a retest conducted on July 5 across 87 subjects. The examination is conducted for awarding Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), determining eligibility for Assistant Professor positions and admission to PhD programs.

The NTA has scheduled the three affected examinations for September. The English paper will be held on September 9, 2026, from 9 a.m. to noon in Shift 1. The Commerce paper will be conducted the same day from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in Shift 2.

The Sociology examination will take place on September 10, 2026, from 9 a.m. to noon in Shift 1.

Information on test cities, examination centers and admit cards will be issued separately on the NTA's official website.

"No additional examination fee will be charged from the candidates of these three subjects for the re-conduct," the NTA said.

The agency has also released provisional answer key PDFs for 84 subjects. Results for candidates who appeared for these 84 papers will be declared according to the existing schedule, the NTA said.

The NTA clarified that the reconduct of English, Commerce and Sociology will not delay the allocation of JRF seats or issuance of e-certificates for candidates in the other 84 subjects.

Separately, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed higher education institutions to strictly implement its anti-ragging regulations.

The commission said universities and colleges must follow the UGC Regulations on Curbing the Menace of Ragging in Higher Educational Institutions, 2009, and adopt a zero-tolerance approach toward ragging.

Institutions have been instructed to strengthen anti-ragging mechanisms and ensure the effective functioning of anti-ragging bodies. They must also address complaints promptly and follow the directions issued under the Supreme Court's May 8, 2009, judgment in Civil Appeal No. 887 of 2009.

The UGC has directed institutions to prominently display the 24x7 anti-ragging toll-free helpline number, 1800-180-5522, along with anti-ragging posters and publicity materials.

Students and parents must submit anti-ragging undertakings through the official anti-ragging portal. Institutions have also been advised to conduct awareness, counseling, orientation and sensitization programs for students.

Universities and colleges have been asked to increase monitoring in hostels and other areas vulnerable to ragging, protect complainants and ensure timely resolution and reporting of complaints.

If a prima facie case of ragging is established, institutions must ensure immediate registration of a First Information Report and initiate disciplinary action.

The UGC has asked institutions to accord the highest priority to anti-ragging measures and ensure compliance by all affiliated colleges under their jurisdiction.