UPSC Aspirants Who Lost Last Chance to COVID to Get 1 More: Centre

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The Centre on Friday, 5 February told the Supreme Court that they will be granting one more attempt to those who had their last opportunity to write the preliminary Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam in October 2020, but were unable to do so owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to TOI, the relaxation will be to the extent of giving one last chance for the exam, specifically limited to CSE-2021, to those whose last chance to write the exam was in 2020.

Previously, on 2 February, solicitor general Tushar Mehta had asked the Centre to allow more time to consider the matter. Thereby, the hearing had reportedly been scheduled for Friday.

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The petition filed in the top court had sought an extra attempt in the UPSC exams for those candidates who had their last attempt in the preliminary examination conducted in October 2020.   

According to IANS, the Supreme Court had on Friday, pointed out that relaxations had been given earlier, and had asked the Centre why it was not possible for them to allow a one-time relaxation to the UPSC aspirants now.

Meanwhile, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), in an affidavit, had previously told the top court that civil services aspirants who have exhausted all their attempts in the exams held in October last year, should not be given an extra attempt. For this the top court had, according to IANS, pulled up the Centre, stating that it did not disclose the level of decision-making for its stand.

According to IANS, a bench headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar had said:

“It is a policy decision and a one-time exemption.”

The bench had further, according to IANS, asked the Centre how many candidates would come into the fray if one-time concession is made and, since the beginning, how many times the UPSC have given relaxation of this nature.

(With inputs from TOI and IANS.)