THE UPSC GOT IT ALL WRONG THIS TIME
THE INDIAN CIVIL SERVICES FIRST INTRODUCED BY THE BRITISHERS TO RULE AND
ADMINISTER THE COUNTRY HAS RIGHTLY BEEN TERMED BY HISTORIANS AS THE 'STEEL
FRAME OF INDIA' ,THE REASONS ARE WELL
KNOWN TO BE DISCUSSED HERE, THE YEARLY EXAMINATION TO THE NATIONS TOP
BUREAUCRATIC POSTS IS CONSIDERED AS ONE OF THE TOUGHEST EXAM IN THE WORLD,
CONSISTING OF THREE PHASES, THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION WHICH IS AN OBJECTIVE
TYPE PAPER,THE MAINS EXAMINATION WHICH ARE SUBJECTIVE IN NATURE AND THE INTERVIEW TO ANALYSE THE PERSONALITY OF THE
STUDENT.
THE UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OR UPSC IN SHORT IS THE AGENCY SET UP
FOR THE PURPOSE OF RECRUITMENT AND CONDUCTING THE EXAMINATION TO SELECT DESIRED
CANDIDATES.TILL 2010, THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION HAD TWO QUESTION PAPERS,ONE WAS
A GENERAL STUDIES ONE AND THE OTHER WAS A QUESTION PAPER OF YOUR CHOICE OF
SUBJECT, CERTAIN STUDENTS ALLEGED THAT THIS TYPE OF A SCHEME WAS HELPFUL FOR
THOSE WHO CAN 'RATTOFY' THE SUBJECTS,MOREOVER CERTAIN SUBJECTS WERE CONSIDERED
SCORING AS COMPARED TO OTHERS, AND SINCE THIS WAS AN ELIMINATION EXAMINATION,A
LOT OF CAPABLE STUDENTS COULD NOT PASS THE FIRST STAGE ITSELF.
TO RECTIFY THE ERROR,THE UPSC IN CONSULTATION AND THE APPROVAL OF THE
PARLIAMENT,BROUGHT MANY DESIRED CHANGES IN THE SCHEME OF THE EXAMINATION,LIKE
BRINGING IN MORE GENERAL STUDIES PAPERS IN THE MAINS EXAMINATIONS AND ALSO THE
OPTION OF ONLY ONE SUBJECT AS OPPOSED TO TWO IN THE SAME.
BUT THE BLUNDER THAT THE UPSC COMMITED WAS TO CHANGE THE SECOND PAPER OF
PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION FROM THAT OF A CHOSEN SUBJECT TO A COMMON EXAMINATION
FOR ALL, ALTHOUGH THE INTENTION OF THE UPSC WAS GOOD,BUT THE WAYS WERE NOT, THE
NEW PAPER CALLED THE GENERAL STUDIES PAPER (COMMONLY CALLED THE CSAT EXAM
-CIVIL SERVICES APTITUDE TEST) IS A PROBLEMATIC EXAMINATION, WITH QUESTIONS
FROM THE FOLLOWING TOPICS
1.BASIC NUMERACY
2.GENERAL MENTAL ABILITY
3.DECISION MAKING & PROBLEM SOLVING
4.ANALYTICAL ABILITY & LOGICAL REASONING
5.COMPREHENSION
6.ENGLISH LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION SKILLS.
THE ABOVE SCHEME SEEMS CATCHY AND VERY MUCH IN SYNCH WITH THE REQUIRED
CHANGES ,BUT IN FACT IT IS NO WHERE NEAR.
THE UPSC WAS CAUGHT UNAWARES WHEN THE ABOVE PAPER ATTRACTED A LARGE NUMBER
OF STUDENTS FROM ONLY ONE TYPE OF STREAM, THE SCIENCE STUDENTS ,LARGELY THOSE
WHO HAD COMPLETED ENGINEERING(FROM PRIVATE COLLEGE PASSOUTS TO IITans AS ALSO
THE IIM GRADUATES, THE REASONS FOR THIS AND RELATED ILL EFFECTS WILL BE DEALT
IN THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS.
THE BELOW MENTIONED ARE THE PROBLEMS THAT AROSE DUE TO INTRODUCTION OF
CSAT.
1.THE UPSC WANTED TO ROOT OUT THE PROBLEM OF INCREASING NUMBER OF COACHING
CENTRES WHO WERE MINTING LARGE AMOUNTS
OF MONEY FROM STUDENTS AND HAD MADE IT A BUSINESS OF SORTS. INSTEAD OF CURING
THE DISEASE,IT BOOMERANGED ON THE COMMISSION SINCE THE CSAT PAPER GAVE IMMENSE
OPPURTUNITES TO THE COACHING CENTRES TO OPEN UP AND DUPE STUDENTS OF THOUSANDS
OF RUPEES ON THE PRETEXT OF COACHING THEM TO BECOME IAS OFFICERS. THERE HAS
BEEN AN IMMENSE HIKE IN THE NUMBER OF COACHING CENTRES SINCE THE INTRODUCTION
OF CSAT, AND CHANGES IN THE SCHEME FORCING MANY COACHING INSTITUTES TO RENT OR
CONSTRUCT NEW BUILDINGS FOR THE PURPOSE.
2. THE LEVEL OF THE QUESTION PAPER IS AVERAGE,BUT TILTED TOWARDS THOSE
HAVING PRIOR KNOWLEDGE OF MATHS AND ENGLISH, WHICH MEANS THAT A STUDENT OF
SCIENCE STREAM WHO EASILY GETS 180 TO 190 MARKS IN THE PAPER OUT OF 200 IS
PITTED AGAINST AN ARTS STUDENT OR A HINDI BACKGROUND STUDENT WHO CAN ONLY
MANAGE TO GET 120 TO 130 MARKS ,THAT TOO WITH HUGE EFFORTS, IT IS WELL KNOWN
THAT THE UPSC EXAMINATION HAS BEEN APPLAUDED FOR BEING A GOLD MINE FOR STUDENTS
OF RURAL BACKGROUND, BUT THE REQUIREMENT OF ENGLISH COMPREHENSION AND LACKING
CERTAIN SKILLS WHICH ARE NOT INHERENTLY AVAILABLE TO THOSE WHO STUDY IN
VILLAGES (THE FAULT WHICH CAN ONLY BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE GOVERNMENT) ,THUS ARE
THROWN OUT OF THE GAME
.
3.IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT MATHEMATICS IS A SUBJECT WHICH CANNOT BE MASTERED
AT THE AGE OF 25 TO 28 (THE AVERAGE AGE OF STUDENTS GIVING THIS PAPER) WHEN YOU DO NOT HAVE A BACKGROUND IN THIS
FIELD, SPECIALLY WHEN YOUR OPPONENTS ARE IIT AND IIM PASSOUTS WHO ARE READY TO
KILL YOU AT THE MOMENT THE BATTLE STARTS.
4. THE WRITER MAY SEEM TO BE BIASED AGAINST THE STUDENTS OF ONE STREAM BUT
THEN THE RIGHT TO EQUALITY SPECIALLY IN GOVERNMENT JOBS AS ENUMERATED IN THE
CONSTITUITON CANNOT BE TAKEN LIGHTLY AND THE OPPURTUNITIES SHOULD PROVIDE A
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD. WHEN A RURAL STUDENT OF SAY TAMIL NADU OR HARYANA IS
PITTED AGAINST AN URBAN ,LEARNED, IIT PROFESSIONAL, AND THE COMPETITON IS IN
THE FIELD WHERE THE URBAN STUDENT HAS AN EDGE ALREADY,THE COMPETITON CANNOT BE
CALLED FAIR AND UNBIASED.
5.THE COMMISION DOES NOT NEED CLERKS OR MATHEMATICIANS,THE LOWER LEVEL
EXAMINATIONS ALREADY HAVE SUCH QUESTIONS SPECIALLY FROM MATHS, ALSO HOW IS A
MASTERY IN ENGLISH OR MATHS OR SCIENCE A REQUISITE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE
CAPABILITY?
6.FACTS DO NOT LIE, THE CUT OFFS OF THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS HAVE SHOT
UP FROM 188 MARKS IN 2011 TO 241 MARKS
IN 2013 , BUT THE CUT OFF FOR THE MAINS EXAMINATIONS HAS BEEN GOING DOWN EACH
YEAR, CLEARLY ENUMERATING THAT THE LEVEL OF SOME STUDENTS REACHING THAT STAGE
ARE NOT OF THE CAPABILITY AS REQUIRED BY
THE NATION.
7. THE NATIONS NEEDS PEOPLE WHO ARE 'JACK OF ALL TRADES' ,THAT IS
ALLROUNDERS ,IF WE GET OFFICIALS FROM ONLY ONE FIELD, THE COUNTRY IS BOUND TO
SUFFER.
8. LAST BUT NOT THE LEAST THE EXAMINATION WHICH SAW 26 PERCENT OR SO STUDENTS BEEN SELECTED FROM HINDI IN THE PAST
YEARS HAVE COME DOWN TO NEARLY 2 PERCENT, SHOWING THE BIAS TOWARDS THE MOTHER
TOUNGUE.
THOUSANDS OF ASPIRANTS HAVE BEEN FIGHTING THE BATTLE FOR A LEVEL PLAYING
FIELD, THERE WAS A 6 DAYS FAST UNTO DEATH BY STUDENTS IN MUKHERJEE NAGAR AREA
OF DELHI, AT 200 OTHER UNIVERSITIES IN INDIA,ALSO PROTESTS BY A STUDENT
POLITICAL WING OF A POLITICAL PARTY TO SCRAP CSAT, THE GOVERNMENT HAS RIGHTLY
WRITTEN TO THE UPSC TO EITHER DELAY THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION THIS YEAR OR
PROVIDE FOR A BETTER SCHEME FOR THE EXAMINATION.
STUDENTS ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE CONSEQUENCES, SINCE IT IS A QUESTION OF
THEIR CAREERS, THE GOVT. AND UPSC SHOULD FIND A MIDDLE PATH FOR THIS YEAR LIKE
AN EXAMINATION IN WHICH THE CSAT IS OF QUALIFYING NATURE, OR OF A SINGLE PAPER
PF GS AND CSAT WITH LESS WEIGHTAGE TO CSAT OR ALSO A SECTIONAL CUT OFF WHEREIN
THE CSAT PAPER WOULD BE CHECKED ONLY IF THE STUDENT GETS A CERTAIN SPECIFIED
MARKS IN THE GS PAPER.
THE ABOVEMENTIONED ARE JUST A FEW SUGGESTIONS FOR THIS YEARS PAPER,BUT IN
THE LONG RUN, THE PARLIAMENT AND THE COMMISION SHOULD BRING IN A JUST AND
DESIRABLE SCHEME SO THAT THE STUDENTS OF ALL STREAMS GET AN EQUAL OPPURTUNITY
TO BE OFFICERS TO SERVE THE NATION.
RANJAN TOMAR
