15 medical students in Andhra Pradesh caught copying debarred from all university exams for one year

Vijayawada: Cracking the whip on students involved in malpractice during the annual medical examinations, Dr NTR University of Health Sciences has debarred 15 of 22 students, who were found copying, from appearing in all university examinations for one year.The malpractice committee, constituted to probe the incidents and recommend action, has intensified its inquiry into the remaining seven students, including three postgraduate, three AYUSH, and one MSc nursing student.“Stricter monitoring through the university’s command and control centre has improved examination transparency, leading to a drop in failure percentage from 9.06% in 2025 to 13.58% in 2026, while the pass percentage declined from 90.94% to 86.42%,” university vice-chancellor Dr P Chandrasekhar said.According to university authorities, of the 15 students against whom action was taken, six were MBBS students, eight BDS students, and one was a BPT student. The six MBBS students were found copying at six examination centres, including five private institutions and one govt institute. The eight BDS students and one BPT student were also found copying at various private examination centres across the state.“Institutions where students were found copying have been imposed a fine of ₹50,000 as a first warning. A fine of ₹1 lakh will be imposed as a second warning on institutions involved in malpractice, while examination centres repeatedly found violating norms will be barred from conducting university examinations for three years,” Dr Chandrasekhar added.The vice-chancellor further said that action will be taken against the remaining seven students after the probe committee submits its report to the university. He said the committee found that the MSc nursing student accused of copying had merely written her name on the hall ticket, which is prohibited. A warning will be issued to the student without further action. However, action will be taken against the remaining postgraduate and AYUSH students based on the committee’s findings.