New Delhi: The government on Tuesday urged the Union Public Service Commission to postpone the civil services preliminary exam, due on August 24, till there is clarity on the syllabus and the exam pattern. This move came amid demands by civil service aspirants, led by the BJP-affiliated ABVP, to scrap the CSAT test.
“We urge the UPSC and the committee constituted to look into the matter that not only (its) report be given at the earliest, considering the urgency of the matter, (but) they should also consider postponing the date of the preliminary exam,” DoPT minister of state Jitendra Singh said outside Parliament.
On Monday, ABVP activists held protests at the UPSC office demanding scrapping of Civil Services Aptitude Tests. The protesters alleged the new pattern put Hindi language aspirants at a disadvantage.
“We would write to the UPSC and the committee ... to submit this report to expedite the process, address their concerns judiciously and sympathetically and not let them go with a feeling that they have been wronged on account of any bias towards any language. There should be no injustice regarding language,” Mr Singh said.
He added civil services aspirants would not be able to prepare for the exam till the syllabus and exam pattern issues are resolved, hence the government suggested a postponement of the preliminary exams.
