UPSC Civil Services Exam 2020: No Plans To Drop Aptitude Test From Examination, Clarifies Govt

UPSC Civil Services Exam 2020: Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh clarified in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha said there are no plans to to drop the CSAT from the civil services examination.

(Representative Image/ Getty)

New Delhi: In a move quelling rumour around dropping the civil services aptitude test (CSAT) from the civil services examination, the government on Thursday clarified its stand that there is no such plan. It means that aptitude exams will be conducted as usual. ALSO READ | ICSE Compartment Exam: CISCE Begins Online Registration For ISCE And ISC Compartmental Exams What is CSAT? Candidates appear for the civil services examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) annually in three stages. These three stages include preliminary, main and interview which selects officers for Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others. The CSAT is part of the civil services preliminary examination. The preliminary exams comprises of two papers of Objective type (multiple choice questions) and carry a maximum of 400 marks in the subjects set out in subsection (A) of Section II. This examination is conducted as a screening test only. The marks obtained in the prelims exam will be declared eligible for the main exam. What’s the current position on CSAT? Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh clarified in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha while responding to a query on the plans to drop the CSAT. The minister also didn't offer any clear response on whether the government was expecting to change the pattern of the UPSC civil services examination, including the replacement of interviews with a psychological test. Meanwhile, the minister responded to a separate query saying there is no such test which has not been conducted even after one year of its registration by the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts entrance examinations for admission/fellowship in higher education institutions. Meanwhile, UPSC Civil Services Admit Card 2020 has been released earlier this month. The aspirants can access the admit card that has been released on UPSC's official website. The admit cards can be downloaded from September 1 to October 4, so the aspirants need to be mindful of the last date.  Candidates will have to reach the exam center at 9.20 am that is 10 minutes prior to the exam begins and in the evening shift, they must reach at 2:20 pm. The exam was planned to be held in the month of May but was postponed due to the Coronavirus situation. Every year over 7 lakh candidates appear for UPSC civil services prelims exam.