Civil services
Civil service is an important government job. It involves variety of job in different departments. This job has job security ("Civil service examination: Introduction", n.d.)"The Indian civil services is considered as one of the premier services which paves the way for becoming an IAS, IPS or IFS officer
Public
Some of the options are: 1)IAS (Indian Administrative Services)
IAS officers are more popularly known as the policy makers & executors. Also, they are authorized to sign agreements on behalf of government. When they act at district level, they are known as district magistrates/collectors and are responsible for each and every affair of the district be it development, law and order, disaster management or anything else. At the secretariat level they perform as deputy secretary, joint secretary, secretary, principal secretary, cabinet secretary , etcIAS officers consider it to be a privilege to work as a district magistrate & principle secretaries to the Prime Minister or Chief Ministers of different states.
2)IPS (Indian Police Service)
A position which all IPS officer crave for is that of a superintendent of police, who are responsible for public safety and security, law and order, crime prevention & detention, traffic control etc. The IPS officers also offer their services to central police organizations like- CBI, CRPF, BSF etc.
3) IFS (Indian Foreign Service)
IFS deal with the external affairs that include diplomacy, trade and cultural relations. They are involved in the framing and implementation of foreign policy. The top most post given to an IFS officer is that of Ambassadors.
1.Legal and rational action
Civil servants must follow the law and rules to govern and guide.
2.Responsibility and accountability
An administrator should hold himself morally responsible for his actions and should be willing to be held accountable.
3. Commitment for work
According to swami vivekananda ‘every duty is holy and devotion to duty is the highest form of worship.
4.Ensuring excellence in work
An administrator would ensure the highest standard of quality in administrative decision and action.
5.Responsiveness and resilience
He should adopt to environmental transformation and yet sustain the ethical norms of conduct.
6.Principle of utilitarianism
An administrator should ensure the his decision should lead to the greatest good of the greatest number.
7.Maximum of Compassion
A civil servant without violating the prescribed law and rules would demonstrate compassion for the poor, the disabled and the weak.
8.National interest
A civil servant should keep in view the impact of his action on his nations strength and prestige.
9.Principle of justice
Administrators must observe principles of equality, equity, fairness, impartiality and objectivity.
10.Transparency
Civil servants will make decisions in a transparent manner.
11.Maximum of integrity
An administrator would undertake an administrative action on the basis of honesty and not use his power, position, and discretion to serve his personal interest(Pandey, 2014)
The Application Procedure for the Civil Services Examination is pretty simple. Electronically scannable Application Forms along with the Information Brochure can be obtained from the designated Head Post Offices/Post Offices throughout the country. The duly filled in Application Form with the acknowledgement card should be sent to - Secretary, Union Public Service Commission, Dholpur House, New Delhi - 110011. For more details regarding Syllabi, Examination Centres and other clauses, interested candidates are advised to check UPSC's Notification issued during December in 'Employment News' and all major newspapers.
The successive stages of examination are:
A degree of any of the Universities incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be a Deemed University under the UGC Act, 1956, or an equivalent qualification.
Candidates who have appeared or intend to appear for the qualifying examination and are awaiting results are also eligible to appear for the Preliminary Examination. All such candidates who qualify to appear for the Civil Services Main Examination must produce proof of having passed the said examination along with their application for the Main Examination.
The UPSC may in exceptional cases treat a candidate without the foregoing requisite qualification as an eligible candidate if he / she has passed an examination conducted by other institutions, the standard of which justifies his / her admission in the opinion of the Commission.
Candidates with professional and technical qualifications recognized by the Government as equivalent to professional and technical degrees.
Candidates who have passed the final year of MBBS or any Medical Examination but are yet to complete the internship can also appear for the Main Examination. However they must submit along with their Main Examination application, a certificate from the concerned authority of the University / Institution that they have passed the final professional medical examination. At the Interview stage they must then produce a certificate from a competent authority that they have completed (including internship) all the requirements for the award of the Medical Degree.
Other Eligibility Conditions for IAS Exams
(1) Nationality
i. Only Indian nationals are eligible for IAS and IPS.
ii. For other services a candidate can be either of the following:
a. A citizen of India,
b. A subject of Nepal,
c. A subject of Bhutan,
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 Burma, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Vietnam, Zaire or Zambia with the intention of permanently settling in India. Candidates belonging to either categories of b., c., d. or e., must produce an eligibility certificate issued by the Government of India. Those who belong to either of b., c., or d., categories are not eligible for appointment to the Indian Foreign Service.
(2) Age Limit
i. A candidate must have attained 21 years and not be over 30 years on August 1 of the year of examination.
ii. The upper age limit is relaxed in specific cases as mentioned below:
a. Up to a maximum of 5 years if the candidate belongs to SC/ST.
b. Up to a maximum of 3 years if the candidate belongs to Other Backward Classes.
c. Up to a maximum of 5 years if the candidate had been domiciled in Jammu & Kashmir during the period between January 1, 1980 and December 31, 1989.
d. Up to a maximum of 3 years in the case of Defence Services personnel disabled during hostilities with foreign countries or in a disturbed area and consequently released.
e. Up to a maximum of 5 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 of the year of examination and have been released:
on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be completed within one year from August 1 of the year of examination) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency, or
on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service, or
on invalidment.
f. Up to a maximum of 5 years in the case of ECOs / SSCOs who have completed an initial period of assignment (5 years Military Service) as on August 1 of the year of examination and whose assignment has been extended beyond 5 years. Such candidates will have to provide a certificate from the Ministry of Defence stating that they can apply for civil employment and they will be released on a notice of 3 months, upon selection, from the date of receipt of offer of appointment.
g. Up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of blind, deaf-mute and orthopaedically handicapped candidates.
Preliminary Exam
The Preliminary Examination is one of the toughest exams in India and you should not take it lightly even though it is meant to serve as a screening test.
From 2011 onwards there will be change in the pattern of the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination as students will be tested with a Civil Service Aptitude Test (CSAT) which focuses on analytical abilities rather than their ability to memorise.
Students would have to give two objective-type papers that have emphasis on testing their "aptitude for civil services" and "ethical and moral dimension of decision-making". These two papers will have equal weightage and will be common to all candidates and will replace the common paper (general awareness) and the optional paper (subject of choice) Main Examinatioain Examination is to assess the overall intellectual traits and depth of understanding of the candidates. The Written Examination in the Main Examination consists of 9 papers
Paper I for one Indian language from those included in Eighth schedule of constitution. The duration is 3 hours and maximum marks is 300. The question type are essays. Paper II is English with duration of 3 hours and marks of 300 and the question type is conventional. Paper III is essay and the duration is 3 hours and the marks is 200. The question type is essay. Paper IV and V is general studies with the duration of 3 hours and marks is 300 for each. The question type is essay. Paper VI, VII,VIII and IX are two papers in each of the optional paper with the duration of 3 hours and 300 marks for each paper. The question type is essay.
There are no prescribed courses for applying for civil services. However, there is a lot of material available online (for e.g. http://byjus.com/ias) and many institutes offer coaching for civil service aspirants.
In Patna:
1. Chanakya IAS Academy, 304, 3rd Floor, above Reliance Trends, Navyug Kamla Business Park, East Boring Canal Road, Patna-13, Phone: +91-9905190260/ +91-8800394501
2. Khan Study Group, Above Toyota Showroom, Exhibition Road, Near Gandhi Maidan, Patna 800001. Phone: +91 612 3223478, +91 9386337412
3. Creative IAS (B.K. Sir), S06, Fifth Floor, Ashiyana Tower, Exhibition road, Patna-1, Phone: 09304814037, 9931253877, E-mail: support@creativeias.org
1) Reason why civil service is a dream career (n.d.) retrieved from http://www.jagranjosh.com/articles/reasons-why-civil-services-is-a-dream-career-1294060798-1
2) Pandey, Akash (October 12, 2014) Qualities and skills required for IAS/IPS officers retrieved from http://www.civilservicesias.com/2014/10/qualities-and-skills-required-for-ias-ips-officers-civil-servants.html
3) Civil service examination: Introduction (n.d.) retrieved from http://career.webindia123.com/career/competitive_exams/upsc_exams/civil_service_exam/intro.htm