- The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has allowed the facility of withdrawal of applications by candidates.
- The arrangement will be implemented beginning with Engineering Services Examination, 2019. This was announced by the Chairman of UPSC Shri Arvind Saxena, while speaking on the occasion of the 92nd Foundation Day Celebrations on October 1.
- As per the Chairman, UPSC’s experience with the Civil Services Examination is that roughly 50% of the 10 lakh plus candidates who fill in the application forms for the Preliminary examination actually write the examination. The Commission has to book venues, print papers, hire invigilators and ship the documents for all the 10 lakh applicants – which turns out to be a 50% waste of energy and resources.
- The chairman said that, “UPSC’s view is that if we are able to work with genuine and serious candidates, we can give them better facilities and make our system more efficient”.
- A start is being made with the Engineering Services Examination, 2019 and more examinations will be brought under this arrangement. In order to avail this facility, the candidate has to provide details of application. Separate OTPs will be sent on candidate’s registered mobile number and email id. On successful completion of withdrawal of application, confirmation message will be sent on email and also an SMS. Once application has been withdrawn, it cannot be revived.
- With a view to reduce the stress for the candidates, the UPSC has brought an increasing number of exam related interactions and transactions online. In this regard, UPSC is also moving ahead with shifting from a “pen and paper” mode of examination to a computer-based mode. Apart from making the examination process more candidate-friendly, the new systems also serve to cut down the time cycle for each examination.
