IAS Preliminary Exam 2023: The objective of UPSC is to select such candidates who have a good understanding of various subjects and possess the skills and abilities required for administrative services. The number of those who appear in this examination has reached one million, while the number of vacancies is more or less around thousand every year. That’s why the level of Civil Services Examination has become difficult. So now the time has come that keeping in mind the increasing competition, changing trends and new requirements of Civil Services, instead of making UPSC stand in the dock, the candidates should accept the changes and increase the level of their preparation. Know the tips given by expert Ajay Anurag, Director, Wisdom IAS, Delhi.
UPSC accused of excesses regarding the examination
The Civil Services Preliminary Examination conducted by UPSC ended on May 28 last. But the period of discussion and debate regarding the examination has not stopped yet. It is being said that this year the level of questions asked in the examination was so difficult that not only the candidates were troubled, but also the condition of the teachers and coaching guides who were solving the questions was very tense. Both the papers General Studies and CSAT remained more or less the same and many candidates found it difficult to crack Paper-II, which is of qualifying nature. The question is, what is the change in the questions that everyone is worried about and UPSC is being accused of excesses?
The level of the exam has become more difficult
First of all, Civil Services Examination is known for its tough, competitive and challenging nature. Sometimes it is even jokingly said that there is only one government job in India – civil service, all the rest are jobs. This is the reason that despite so many jobs in government or non-government sectors, the craze among the youth about civil service has been increasing and the number of people appearing in this examination has reached one million, while the number of vacancies is more or less around thousand every year. – Passes. It is obvious that the level of Civil Services Examination will be tough.
Increase in the number of candidates
In fact, the number of candidates appearing in the preliminary exam is increasing year by year, so it has also become difficult for UPSC to select the eligible candidates for the mains exam. As far as the difficulty level of the questions is concerned, the difficulty level varies almost every year. For example, sometimes more emphasis is given on factual information, and sometimes on conceptual understanding. Similarly, different sections of General Studies are given more weightage in different years in different ways, which is unexpected at times. The objective of UPSC is to select candidates who have a sound understanding of various subjects and possess the skills and abilities required for administrative services.
Competition has increased over time
Since the scope of this examination is very wide and comprehensive and for this, along with the conceptual understanding of the candidates regarding the subject matter of the syllabus, factual information is also necessary, therefore it is necessary to give some definite and sufficient time for its preparation. No matter how intelligent and sharp minded a candidate is, he needs constant practice to prepare the syllabus completely. Earlier, when there was lack of awareness or coaching or study material about this exam, then the aspirant of Civil Services Examination used to read the basic reference books of all the subjects and make his own notes, due to which his comprehensive understanding was made. But in today’s changed scenario where on one hand the syllabus of the exam has been updated and advanced, on the other hand new tools like YouTube and Google have increased the competition by opening the field of knowledge to all.
Emphasis on exam trends and analysis
The guides of digital gurus or coaching centers teaching on YouTube regarding exam preparation have laid more emphasis on trend analysis and decoding of the exam instead of understanding the seriousness of the subject matter. By the way, in some cases it has also been useful, but UPSC wants to end any such shortcut and for that it keeps on doing some innovative experiments every year. UPSC has no other option to shortlist the serious candidates. This is exactly the same as is seen in the entrance examinations of IITs and IIMs.
Increase your preparation level
Keeping in mind the growing competition, changing trends and new requirements of civil services, the time has come for the aspirants to raise the level of their preparation and accept the changes instead of putting UPSC in the dock. Today, when a new India is being envisioned at every level, then we will also need to change accordingly. In today’s era of fast food, those who see UPSC as fast food or fashion or want to get success in it by giving only five-six months like preparing for any entrance exam, they need to rethink their strategy once. .
Expert: Ajay Anurag, Director, Wisdom IAS, Delhi
