Telegram messaging app temporarily restricted in India: Central government with unusual move

NEW DELHI: The central government temporarily restricted access to the messaging application Telegram in India. The restriction was imposed till the 22nd of this month. The Union Home Ministry’s move is part of the security measures in connection with the NEET re-examination.

According to the information provided by the NTA (National Testing Agency), the department related to cybersecurity brought restrictions on Telegram's services as part of preventing exam papers from getting leaked again.

Restricting social media in connection with an exam is an unprecedented move in the country. The police had registered a case and arrested two people after messages appeared on Telegram the other day stating that the question paper of the upcoming exam was for sale. The NTA and the central government denied reports of a question paper leak and asked parents and students not to fall for the fake reports.

Following this, an order was issued restricting the use of Telegram. The message editing feature on Telegram (the facility to edit a message sent yesterday) will be inactive in India until the 30th of this month. The NTA clarified in a press release that the errors will not be repeated and there is no question of any malpractice this time. The earlier leaked question paper was widely circulated through Telegram. With this in mind, a temporary restriction has been imposed on Telegram in India.