The arrest of teachers associated with coaching institutions in Pune in connection with the NEET paper leak investigation has once again exposed a troubling reality about contemporary Indian education. The issue is no longer confined to examination security, administrative lapses, or technological safeguards. At its core lies a far deeper question: what happens when education becomes an industry and aspiration becomes a commodity?Public debate has largely revolved around whether paper-based examinations should be replaced by computer-based testing. While such discussions are important, they risk overlooking the structural forces that repeatedly produce crises in competitive examinations. Paper leaks are symptoms. The disease lies elsewhere.

Over the past two decades, India has witnessed the emergence of a vast examination economy. What began as supplementary coaching has evolved into a parallel education system. Entire urban centres now derive their identity from entrance examination preparation. Coaching institutes, test-series providers, private hostels, digital platforms, motivational speakers, counselling agencies, and increasingly private reading rooms together constitute a multi-billion-rupee ecosystem built around competitive anxiety.

The growth of this ecosystem reflects not merely entrepreneurial success but institutional failure. Students seek coaching because schools are considered insufficient. They join private test programmes because public........

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