UPSC may reduce upper age limit. All you need to know

There is a very important news for all those who aspire to build their careers through civil services exams. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) may soon reduce the upper age limit of candidates preparing for the toughest competitive exams of the country.

According to Hindustan Times, the panel under the leadership of former education secretary BS Baswan recommended UPSC to reduce the upper age limit of civil service aspirants. Mr Baswan said that UPSC would first take a look at the report of the panel; later, the government would take final decision based on the inputs from UPSC.

The UPSC conducts civil services examination in three phases i.e. preliminary, main and interview through which officers are recruited to Indian Administrative Service, Indian Foreign Service and Indian Police Service and others.

What is the current upper age limit for candidates?

As of now, the upper age limit for SC/ST candidates is relaxed by five years

For other backward classes it is relaxed by a three years

For disabled candidates, it is relaxed by 10 years

The previous central governments never considered the aforementioned recommendation from several panels. In fact, they went on increasing the upper age limit -

It was 26 in the 1960s and was increased to 28 in the 1980s

Currently, it is 32

What is the reason behind reducing upper age limit

The panel has recommended that the age limit should be reduced step by step through several years and not at once.

The panel opines that reducing the upper age limit would work in favour of thousands of people who burn the midnight oil preparing for the civil services examination and whose careers might be messed up if they come to know that they have become ineligible for the examination in the middle of the process.

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