The Indian Police Service (IPS) is one of the three All India Services of the Government of India. The IPS was formed in the year 1948. The cadre controlling authority for the IPS is the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The Indian Police Service examination is a part of the Civil Services Examination (CSE) which is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) each year. An IPS (Indian Police Service) officer carries out his/her responsibilities by In order to fulfil these functions efficiently, responsibly and systematically, the IPS service is divided into various functional departments such as Crime Branch, Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Home Guards, Traffic Bureau. The Indian Police Service (IPS) selection will be made through the Civil Services Examination (CSE) conduct by the UPSC along with more than 20 services. The application process and selection process is common for all the services. Approximately, over eight lakh candidates apply for the IPS exam every year. The selection process for the IPS includes the preliminary, main examination and an interview/personality test. Every year, the selection process will begin in the month of June with Preliminary and conclude in April. The final merit list for the CSE will be released in May. The UPSC released the Civil Services Examination (CSE) notification on 14 February, 2024. Candidates can apply for the examination until 05 March, 2024. The CSE Preliminary Exam will be held on 26 May, 2024 and the IPS Main Exam will be held from 20 September, 2024 Onwards (5 Days). IPS Exam
IPS Officer
Branches in IPS
IPS Exam Highlights
Exam Civil Services Examination Exam level National Organising body Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Exam type Pen and paper-based (offline) Number of services 24 Number of attempts 6 attempts Number of Vacancies Approximately 800 Expected registration Approximately 8 lakh IPS Exam 2024 Important Dates
Civil Services Examination (CSE) notification 14 February, 2024 IPS online application form 14 February to 05 March, 2024 IPS Preliminary admit card 2024 3rd week of May IPS exam date 2024 26 May, 2024 IPS Preliminary result August 2024 IPS Main exam date 20, 21, 22, 28 & 29 September, 2024 (5 days) IPS Main exam result October 2024 IPS personality test/ interview November 2024 IPS final result December 2024
The physical criteria for eligibility of the IPS officer is as follows:
Minimum Height - Men - 165cm Women - 150cm
Relaxable minimum height is 160cm (men) and 145cm (women) for candidates belonging to ST and races such as Gorkhas, Garhwalias, Assamese, Kumaonis, Nagaland Tribals, etc.
Minimum Chest Girth - Men/Women: 84cm 79cm
Myopia (including cylinder) should not exceed minus 4.00D
Hypermyopia (including cylinder) should not exceed plus 4.00D
Nationality of a candidate must be either of the following:
Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam
A candidate must hold a Bachelor's degree from any of the universities recognised by the UGC or possess an equivalent qualification.
Candidate should fulfill the age limits mentioned below:
Relaxable age limit is as follows:
Restriction on the maximum number of attempts is effective since 1984:
Latest Updates
The UPSC has released the Indian Police Service (IPS) 2022 exam dates. The IPS Preliminary 2022 will be conducted on June 5. The Commission has also released the tentative dates for all the examinations or recruitment tests in 2022 along with the date of notification, last date to receipt of online applications.
The IPS Prelims 2021 will be conducted on October 10.
16 August 2021
The UPSC has postponed the IPS Preliminary exam scheduled on June 27 due to the second wave of the Coronavirus (COVID 19) pandemic. The Commission is likely to conduct the IPS preliminary exam on October 10, 2021.
The official notice reads, "Due to the prevailing conditions caused by the Novel Corona Virus (COVID-19), the Union Public Service Commission has deferred the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2021, which was scheduled to be held on 27th June, 2021. Now, this Examination will be held on 10th October, 2021."
14 May 2021
The UPSC has released the IPS interview dates 2021. Candidates who have passed with flying colours in the Mains exam were shortlisted for the final phase of the exam, i.e., interview. Candidates can check the interview dates published on the official website.
The Commission will be conducting the IPS interview between April 26 and June 18, 2021. It will release the e-summons letters of personality tests (interviews) of the candidates will be available soon on the official website. The air tickets will be reimbursed booked through the Airlines or travel agents.
7 April 2021
The UPSC will close the IPS 2021 application form today. i.e., March 24. Candidates are advised to visit the official website to complete the IPS exam 2021 registration process.
The Commission will be conducting the IPS Prelims exam 2021 on June 27. The admit card of the Prelims exam will be available on the official site in May 2021.
24 March 2021
The UPSC has released the IPS Mains Exam 2020 result on March 23, 2021. Candidates who have appeared for the IPS Mains examination conducted between January 8 and 17 can visit the official website to check the result.
The UPSC has released the list of candidates shortlisted for the personality test (PT)/ interview. The Commission is likely to begin the interview process in the last week of April. The shortlisted candidates are required to fill up the attestation form online and submit the same online till April 5, 2021.
23 March 2021