Nilekani Appointed to Head Exam Reforms Panel
Seventeen years after he was handpicked by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to create Aadhaar, Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani has returned to lead a major national transformation. This time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appointed him as chairperson of a national task force on examination reforms, aiming to restore integrity in the wake of repeated paper leaks.
From UPA to NDA: A Trusted Strategist
Nilekani first entered the government in 2009 when Manmohan Singh invited him to set up the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and issue Aadhaar numbers to all citizens. The task of engaging Nilekani was assigned to then Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia. Speaking at an event at the Prime Ministers’ Museum and Library in New Delhi, Ahluwalia recalled the process. “The critical thing here was not that we decided on Aadhaar. The critical thing was that we brought in Nandan Nilekani to set it up. Had it not been for Nandan, we would have been stuck in a completely old-fashioned way. He turned the whole thing upside down,” Ahluwalia said. He added that Manmohan Singh initially offered Nilekani a senior role in the Planning Commission, but Nilekani refused unless granted full autonomy. Consequently, Singh gave Nilekani Cabinet rank with full charge of Aadhaar, making him equivalent to a Cabinet minister while located in the Planning Commission.
Why Nilekani Again?
Official sources revealed that the government realised highly complex challenges require domain expertise beyond conventional approaches. The National Testing Agency (NTA) has faced two NEET UG paper leaks in recent times, undermining public trust. The student protests by the Cockroach Janta Party led to the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The newly constituted task force includes former ISRO Chairman S Somanath, former IB Director Tapan Deka, IIT-Madras Director V Kamakoti, former Education Secretary Anita Karwal, and logistics expert Amrit Lal Meena. “Examination reforms are not routine government reforms. They involve major institutional change. This explains why Prime Minister Modi has brought in the best minds to lead examination reforms and restore public faith in the system,” an official source said.
Aadhaar’s Legacy and Digital Public Infrastructure
Nilekani’s earlier creation, Aadhaar, remains the foundation of India’s digital stack. Ahluwalia described UIDAI and Aadhaar as one of the biggest successes of the UPA 2.0 government. The digital public infrastructure built on Aadhaar enabled financial inclusion and serves as the backbone for numerous government schemes. Now, Nilekani is tasked with addressing the vulnerabilities in competitive exams, particularly in an era of cyber fraud and artificial intelligence threats.
