IES/ISS Exam

What is IES/ISS Exam?

The Indian Economic Service along with Indian Statistical Service is the administrative inter-ministerial civil service under Group A of the Central Civil Services of the executive branch of the Government of India.

The Indian Economic Service was introduced for formulating and implementing economic policies and programmes in India. With the initiation of large-scale economic reforms in 1991 and the proliferation of the regulatory role of the government, such analysis and advice within the domain of the service have increased manifold. For Indian Statistical Service, all statistical posts of different ministries and departments were pooled together in the initial constitution of service.

A combined competitive examination for recruitment to Junior Time Scale of the Services will be held by the Union Public Service Commission in accordance with the rules published by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation in the Gazette of India. 

IES Exam 2020: Important Update 

The Indian Economic Service Examination (IES), 2020 will not be held due to NIL vacancy reported for the Indian Economic Service by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Economic Affairs). The Commission has released only the Indian Statistical Service (ISS) notification. 

Indian Economic Service (IES) & Indian Statistical Service (ISS) Highlights 

IES/ ISS Exam 2020

The official notification for the Indian Economic Service (IES)/ Indian Statistical Service (ISS) was released on June 10, 2020. Candidates can apply online between June 10 and June 30, 2020. The written examination will be held from October 16, 2020, onwards.

IES/ ISS Notification 2020

According to the UPSC calendar, the IES/ISS official notification was released on August 11, 2020. Candidates who are aspiring for the Indian Economic Service and Indian Statistical Service can start their registration from the release of official notification. The official notification will also display the total number of vacancies. The online application window will be active between August 11 and till September 01.  

Download Indian Statistical Service (ISS) notification 2020  

Download Indian Economic Service (IES) notification 2020

IES/ ISS Number of Vacancies

Services to which recruitment is to be made on the results of this exam and the approx number of vacancies in Junior Scale of the Services are given below:

• Indian Economic Service - Nil
• Indian Statistical Service - 47 Seats

Note: 1 vacancy has been kept reserved for Persons with Benchmark Disabilities in the category of Blindness or Low Vision for Indian Statistical Service. 

Eligibility Criteria

1. Nationality:

   A candidate must be either:

   (a) a Citizen of India, or
   (b) a subject of Nepal, or
   (c) a subject of Bhutan, or
   (d) a Tibetan refugee who came over to India before January 1, 1962, with the intention of permanently settling in India, or
   (e) a person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka or East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, and Ethiopia or from Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India.

   Note:

   • Provided that a candidate belonging to categories (b), (c), (d) and (e) above shall be a person in whose favour a certificate of eligibility has been issued by the Government of India
   • A candidate in whose case a certificate of eligibility is necessary may be admitted to the examination but the offer of appointment may be given only after the necessary eligibility certificate has been issued to him/her by the Government of India

2. Educational Qualification:

   1. For Indian Economic Service (IES):
   
      The candidates must have obtained a Post Graduate Degree in Economics/Applied Economics/Business Economics/Econometrics from a recognized university or a foreign university approved by the Central Government of India from time to time.
   
   2. For Indian Statistical Service (ISS):
    
      The candidates must have obtained a Bachelor's Degree with Statistics/Mathematical Statistics/Applied Statistics as one of the subject or else the candidates should hold a Master's degree in Statistics/Mathematical Statistics/Applied Statistics from a recognized university or a foreign university approved by the Central Government of India from time to time.

3. Age Limit :

   The candidates must have attained the age of 21 years and must not have attained the age of 30 years as on August 1, 2020, i.e. he/she must have been born not earlier than August 2, 1990, and not later than August 1, 1999.
   
   The upper age limit prescribed above will be relaxable as mentioned for the below categories:

   • Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe - 5 Years
   • Other Backward Classes - 3 Years
   • If a candidate has ordinarily been domiciled in the State of Jammu & Kashmir during the period from January 1, 1980, to December 31, 1989, - 5 Years
   • Up to a maximum of three years in the case of Defence Services Personnel disabled in operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area, and released as a consequence thereof
   • Up to a maximum of five years in the case of ex-servicemen including Commissioned Officers and ECOs/SSCOs who have rendered at least five years Military Service as on August 1, 2020
   • Up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of (a) blindness & low vision, (b) deaf & hard of hearing, (c) locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims and muscular dystrophy, (d) autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability and mental illness, (e) multiple disabilities from amongst person under clauses (a) to (d) including deaf-blindness

Roles and Responsibilities

IES is the gateway to the central service as Group A officers. Aspirants who successfully pass IES/ISS examination are placed in various cadre posts in the planning commission, planning board, ministry of economic affairs, national sample survey and other allied offices where specialists in economics and statistics are required. 

The posts are primarily located in Ministries/ Departments dealing with economic and social sectors. Besides Cadre posts, IES officers go on deputation to serve in various domestic and international organizations such as UN bodies, foreign governments, state governments and regulatory bodies. Officers from the service are also appointed on deputation to posts in the Central Ministries/ Departments under the Central Staffing Scheme. 

The places of posting are usually in the State capitals or New Delhi. A candidate selected at a favorable age can expect to rise quite high in the career and touch the level of even Secretary to the Government of India, in any Ministry concerned with economic affairs.