The Union education ministry on Wednesday cancelled the UGC-NET examination a day after it was conducted and said the integrity of the process may have been compromised, potentially jeopardising the futures of 900,000 students who appeared for the test.

The announcement adds fire to a swirling controversy around skewed results and allegations of paper leaks that have vitiated the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test this year, and will spark more questions about the processes followed by the National Testing Agency.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) National Eligibility Test (NET) is conducted by the National Testing Agency twice a year for PhD admissions, assistant professorship and for the awarding of Junior Research Fellowship (JRF).

The June edition of the exam was held on June 18 with 908, 580 candidates appearing at 1, 200 centres, taking the test 83 subjects using pen and paper on OMR sheets.