upsc-exams/upsc-exam-india-civil-services-ias-reservation-faq

FAQ on Reservation in Indian Civil Services

How does the reservation criteria work?

What is normally the cut off mark for an SC candidate in prelims The Reservation is as per the government guidelines. That is 27% for OBCs , 15% for SCs and 7.5% for STs. These reservations are given in the Preliminary stage itself. There is no minimum marks like that in the UPSC. Suppose 750 students from a particular category is to be selected, top 750 candidates will be selected among the particular category after some standardization or normalization of the all subjects. The original marks obtained from the General Studies is kept intact. But the optional paper goes through somestandardization or normalization to give equality to all the optionals. Thee the General studies and Optional will be totalled for the total ranking. I am a student of final year chemical engineering. I want to get into IFS, what about the reservation in CSE? The reservation is as per Government of India's policy.
27% for OBCs.
15% for SCs
7.5 % for STs.
The rest is for general category.

I belong to Agrawal community domiciled in Bihar. I have seen that in the past few Agrawals from Bihar has passed the exam as an OBC candidate. I have appeared also as an OBC candidate in this year's main examination mentioning my caste as BANIA(VAISHYA). I have got the letter from UPSC to mention completely my caste name. I have 20 days to respond. Can you help me what should I fill in the caste column. I will be very grateful. Thanking you in anticipation of prompt reply

What you have mentioned is group of communities. ie Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaisha like that. But there is a Subcaste / Caste under this group. This certificate is issued by the Taluk officer / Tahsildar. So you have to mention that caste. UPSC would like to check whether your caste in the approved list of the Social Justice and Empowerment or not.

What is the last age for UPSC exam for girls in general and OBC categories?

There is no age relaxation for girls in civil services. 30 for general and 33 for OBCs

I am a physically challenged and also come in OBC. Does OBC will provide some reservation or just I will be in handicap quota. If it provide than how much.

You will get reservation both in OBC Physically challenged has few seats and it goes on rotation from one service to other on rota quota method. There are some services ( technical ) like IPS, IRTS, CBI will not select handicap persons. So the PH reservation is in selected services only. If you read the model notification you will get the details. The recent judgement by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, One can use one recervation only NOT two reservations. WE are not sure if it is applicable for PH category people also.

I fall under the OBC category in State list. Till now I have not claimed it. When I checked, it was confirmed that my caste comes under OBC in Central List also. What are the documents I need for UPSC exams to claim for my category, please give me complete details .

The OBC certificate is issued by the 'Taluka' officers and it is to be submitted before the exams. At the preliminary stage, not the ORIGINAL document [but photocopy ] is to be sent to UPSC. Though your community matches with the Central list, there are some which come under the creamy layer of the Central list. So one has to be below the creamy layer. The certificate issuing authorities are aware of the requirements.

I want to know how many attempts are possible for ST category in UPSC-IAS, Engineering Service Exam and Indian Forest Service Exam.

There is no count. They can appear till they fulfill their age eligibility criteria. That is minimum 21 years and maximum 35 years. If the same criteria person wants to avail Ex- Service man quota, they will have more attempts and higher age also. For the details, you can go through the model notification given in the book.

Is there any reservation in Preliminary exam based on subject?

There is no reservation in the preliminary exam based on subject. Normally all the optional paper marks are standardized/ normalized taking one standard subject. Then everyone becomes equal. Then General Studies marks are added to this for final result.

What are the kind of relaxations and reservations for physically challenged persons in CSE?

In civil services, the seats are reserved for physically challenged candidates every year. It is also on rotation basis. They are also allotted to few services. It is also decided in advance. A physically challenged student also come through open competition without reservation. But he/she will be given that specified service only. Physically challenged student get age relaxation also. As you have asked, if there are two candidates only for three seats. Third seat will lapse or will be carried forward to next year. It depends on the rule of the particular service/cadre controlling authority In practice, there is enough competition among the physically challenged students.

How can I ascertain my status for reservation under SC/ST/OBC categories?

You can find out from the National Commission for the Backward Classes website about your community, whether it come under OBC or not. Whether you come under the creamy layer or not also available. The URL is http://www.ncbc.nic.in/