Panel to suggest changes in civil service exam pattern

Panel to suggest changes in civil service exam pattern
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

New Delhi, July 19: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has appointed a nine-member committee headed by well-known economist, Prof Y K Alagh, to examine the present scheme of civil service examination and recommend changes to ensure selection of the most suitable persons for various government services.

The committee would evaluate the effectiveness of the scheme and review the rules for the examinations, apart from studying the feasibility of adopting an improved method of allocation of services, according to its terms of reference.

It would also examine whether the present practice of a common main written examination, the differential assessment of candidates by interview board personality test to determine the relative suitability of candidates for different services, could be a viable mechanism, an official release said.

Besides Prof Alagh, other members of the committee are former lt governor of Delhi Tejinder Khanna, former chairman of audit board Dr B P Mathur, scope chairman Dr U Kohli, former chairperson of University Grants Commission Prof A S Desai, vice-chancellor of West Bengal National university of juridical sciences Dr Madhava Menon, and additional secretary of department of personnel D C Gupta.

IMG Khan, additional secretary in UPSC, has been appointed its member-secretary, an official release said. The committee, which is expected to submit its report within six months, has been asked to suggest modifications, additions or deletions in the subjects of the preliminary or main examinations.

It would also examine the desirability of associating the UPSC with assessment of officers in terms of satisfactory completion of their induction training in training institutions, according to the terms of reference.

The committee would invite public opinion and hold wide-ranging consultations with academicians, management and training institutions, public representatives and cadre-controlling authorities, the release said.

The need for amending the current practices of selecting cadres arose due to "considerable changes" in the administrative mechanism in the country, opening up of the economy and advancements in the field of technology, it said.

Due to these developments, work environment of thebureaucracy, which earlier had a regulating or controlling role, has now changed to a facilitating role, it added.