MDMK general secretary Vaiko on Monday urged the Centre to withdraw its decision to reduce the upper age limit for civil service aspirants as it would decrease the representation of candidates with rural background in the All India Services.
“A majority of candidates from rural areas have to make a few attempts to reach the mains or the interview. Their level of awareness and exposure to the civil service exams is lower than that of students in urban centres,” he said in a statement.
S. Balamurugan, Director of Bala IAS Academy in Chennai, said the decision to bring down the upper age limit and the number of attempts would have a drastic impact on civil service aspirants, particularly those belonging to the SC/ST and OBC categories. “Many of them make the first attempt only after completing post-graduation and get to understand the intricacies of the civil service exams only after a couple of attempts…,” he said.
D. Venkatesh Kumar of Impact Academy, which offers civil services aspirants coaching in Chennai and Bangalore, said limiting the age and attempts would lead to an urban bias in the civil service exams.
S. Surekha, 28, a postgraduate in dental surgery, said she was making the first attempt this year. “I am shocked that there is a move to cut the upper age limit. By the time a candidate completes post-graduation in medicine, he/she crosses 25 or 26 years. There are many like me who have planned to write the civil service exams this year.”
Tamil Nadu has been making a significant contribution to All India Services with a large number of candidates from the State qualifying the exams every year.
According to P.S. Ravindran, Director, Vajiram and Ravi Institute for IAS Examination, New Delhi, the pass percentage for Tamil Nadu candidates last year was 9.5. Before the CSAT was introduced, it was 14.
