A serious question regarding the reliability of the education system has resurfaced at Uttarakhand Technical University (UTU) following a high-profile incident involving the leak of examination materials. Negligence or collusion by a professor who distributed questions via WhatsApp shortly before the exams led to the cancellation of two important tests. In response, the student organization NSUI has announced decisive action and launched an active campaign.
The investigation revealed that two semester exams for the 2025-26 academic year at UTU were cancelled due to allegations of leakage. It was found that Aashish Kumar Gupta, an assistant professor at Shivalik College of Engineering, shared questions for the subject 'Machine Learning for Internet of Things' (1OTT004) with students via the internal portal and WhatsApp just before the examination. Furthermore, suspicions arose regarding a breach of confidentiality in the examination materials for the subject 'Electromagnetic Field Theory' (ECT043).
The university immediately annulled both exams, rescheduling them for the third week of August 2026. Aashish Kumar Gupta was banned from all university examination functions for a period of seven years. UTU also issued a strict warning to Shivalik College of Engineering regarding deficiencies in the exam monitoring system.
In this incident, the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) opposed the university administration. NSUI labeled the leak as a betrayal of the students' future and demanded strict action against those responsible, an impartial investigation, and the protection of students' interests. In light of these demands, NSUI activists will hold a protest at the UTU campus on Thursday, July 23rd, at 1:00 PM, to submit a petition to the administration. The protest will be led by former student council president Siddharth Agrawal.
