About 60,000 candidates who appeared in the preliminary examinations for the Group-1 examinations conducted by the Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission in May 2019 are waiting with bated breath for the results.
Citing a stay order by the High Court, the APPSC has not declared the results even five months after the preliminary examinations were held. What is making the candidates feel jittery is the announcement of a revised schedule of the Mains examinations by the APPSC in July this year. The APPSC has announced that the Mains examinations would be held from December 12 to 23, 2019.
“We are extremely tense and worried as we have little time for preparation. Even before the results of preliminary examinations are released, the APPSC has announced the schedule of the Mains examination. On the other hand, the UPSC has released the results of prelims and has even conducted the Mains examinations,’’ said a Group-1 aspirant from Guntur, who wished to remain anonymous.
A few had approached the High Court seeking to cancel the examinations since calculators were not allowed in the examination hall. But some candidates argued that just because calculators have not been allowed cannot be a valid ground for annulling an entire exam. Even in UPSC civil service prelims, calculators are not allowed in CSAT held in the afternoon session, said another aspirant.
Some argued that there are mistakes in translation of questions from English to Telugu but the APPSC has rectified major errors by deleting some questions and altering answers to some others. This too cannot be a ground for cancellation of examination as candidates have invested their precious time and energy in preparing and seriously appearing in the prelims examinations, they said.
The Group I examination’s (preliminary) question paper had been tough as compared to previous years, said candidates and experts. If the preliminary examination is cancelled, serious aspirants will be highly discouraged, said an aspirant studying at the State Regional Library.
