Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (UKPSC) Pattern

  Introduction

The Uttarakhand Civil Services Examination is conducted by the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (UKPSC), Haridwar. The exam is divided into three stages. The first stage is preliminary, the second stage is the main examination, and third stage is the interview. Those who qualify in the preliminary stage are eligible to appear in the main examination. While there are slight differences in the nature and procedure of this exam compared to the UPSC, it still plays a useful role in preparing students for the Civil Services Examination, increasing their chances of success in both exams.

Examinations conducted by the Commission:

• The state-based government, semi-government, judicial, state forest service and other subordinate services in Uttarakhand are mainly organized by the Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (UKPSC), Haridwar.
• The most popular examinations conducted by this commission include Combined State Civil/Upper Subordinate Services Examination, Combined State Civil/Lower Subordinate Services Examination and Review Officer (RO)/Assistant Review Officer (ARO) examination etc.
• A candidate from any state of India can appear in the Uttarakhand Combined State Civil/Upper Subordinate Services Examination’.

Nature of Exam

• This competitive examination conducted by the commission generally consists of three levels sequentially-
  1. Preliminary Examination – Objective Nature
  2. Main Examination- Descriptive Nature
  3. Interview – Oral
• In the notification issued by the Commission in the year 2014, UKPSC, significant changes were made in the nature and syllabus of this preliminary examination and main examination. Its detailed description is given below.

Exam Process

Preliminary Examination

• First of all, the release related to these examinations is issued by the commission, after that the process of filling the online application form starts. The detailed information related to the process of filling the form is given under the heading ‘How to apply online?’ under the ‘Notification’.
• A detailed description of various aspects related to the said examination is given in the release. Therefore, it is beneficial to study it before filling the form.
• After the completion of the form filling process, the preliminary examination is usually conducted after 2 to 3 months.
• The preliminary examination is conducted on the same day at different centers of the state as decided by the commission.
• The Preliminary Examination is of objective type (multiple choice) in which one has to select the correct option for each question from the given four possible options (a, b, c and d).
  • The selected options related to the question are filled in an OMR sheet given by the commission. It is to be filled with black ball point pen.
• There is a provision of negative marking for wrong answers in this examination conducted by the UKPSC in which one-fourth (1/4) mark is deducted as penalty for each wrong answer.
  • If a candidate gives more than one answer to a question, then that answer will be treated as wrong, even if one of the given answers is the correct, even then the same penalty will be given for that question as above.
  • If a question is not attempted by the candidate, i.e. no answer is given by the candidate, then no penalty will be given for that question.
• The question paper is given in two languages (Hindi and English), candidates can read and answer the questions in any of these two languages according to their ease.
  • In the year 2014, the nature of the preliminary examination was changed by the commission, according to which the question paper of ‘General Intelligence Test’ (General Aptitude Test) was adopted instead of the optional subject (objective) asked in the second paper.
• At present, two compulsory papers (‘General Studies’ and ‘General Intelligence Test’ respectively) are asked in the Preliminary Examination, the examination of which is conducted on the same day in two different shifts in two hours duration.
  • The question paper of ‘General Intelligence Test’ is also known as ‘CSAT’ (Civil Service Aptitude Test).
  • The preliminary exam has a total of 300 marks.
  • The first paper is of ‘General Studies’, in which the total number of questions is 150 and the maximum marks are 150 (each question is of 01 mark).
  • The second paper is of ‘General Intelligence Test’, in which the total number of questions is 100 and the maximum marks are 150 (each question is of 1.5 marks).
• The cut-off is determined on the basis of the sum of the marks obtained by the candidates in both these papers of the preliminary examination. Only the candidates who secure more than the prescribed cut-off level are declared successful for the main examination.
• Generally 65-70% marks are required to pass this exam, but sometimes this percentage may be higher or lower depending on the difficulty level of the questions.
• The preliminary examination is qualifying in nature. The marks obtained in this are not added with the marks of the main exam or interview.

Mains Exam Process

• The number of candidates admitted to the main examination is generally about 15 times the total number of vacancies to be filled from different categories of service and posts displayed in the advertisement.
• For the successful candidates in the preliminary examination, the main examination is conducted mainly in the two districts of the state ‘Haldwani’ and ‘Haridwar’ at various centers fixed by the commission.
• In the year 2014, there was a radical change in the syllabus of this main examination. Earlier, in this main examination, along with general studies, two optional subjects were also asked, which have now been removed.
• Now seven compulsory papers are asked in this main exam. Its detailed information is given in the title ‘Syllabus’.
• The main exam is descriptive/analytical in nature. The answers to all these questions are to be written in the prescribed words in the prescribed space in the answer-book given by the Commission within a time limit of not more than three hours.
• The main exam is of total 1500 marks.
  • The first question paper is related to ‘Language’. In this questions related to General Hindi, General English and Essay writing are asked. A total of 300 marks have been fixed for this.
    • Except for the first question paper ‘Language’, all other papers can be answered in Hindi or in English only, but in any paper, the answer will not be given in English and Hindi partly.
  • The second paper is related to ‘History of India, National Movement, Society and Culture’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
  • The third question paper is related to ‘Indian Polity, Social Justice and International Relations’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
  • The fourth question paper is related to ‘Geography of India and the world’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
  • The fifth question paper is related to ‘Economic and Social Development’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
  • Paper VI is related to ‘General Science and Technology’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
  • The seventh question paper is related to ‘General Aptitude and Ethics’. A total of 200 marks have been fixed for this.
• Generally 55-60% marks are required to get success in this stage of the exam. However, due to the change in the syllabus, this percentage may be slightly less.
• The marks obtained in these papers will be added to the merit list as before.
• All the subjects of the exam get the credit for the organized, subtle and powerful expression in the least amount of words.

Note:

• It will be mandatory to obtain minimum 35% marks in the language paper.

Interview Process

• The candidates selected in the main examination have to appear for an interview before the commission after one month ordinarily.
• The personality of the candidates is tested during the interview, in which oral questions are asked by the members of the commission at the designated place in the commission. The answer is to be given by the candidate orally. This process lasts for more than one day depending on the number of candidates.
• A total of 200 marks have been fixed for the interview in this examination.
• Merit list is prepared on the basis of aggregate of marks obtained in the main examination and interview.
• The list of finally selected candidates is released usually one week after the completion of the entire interview.