The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) will now release provisional answer keys for the Civil Services Preliminary Examination soon after the test concludes. This marks a significant shift from its previous policy, which saw answer keys released only after a year-long wait, following the entire examination cycle. The change implements a direct directive from the Supreme Court, addressing long-standing concerns about the Commission’s transparency.
Supreme Court Mandate on Transparency
The Supreme Court spent months conducting hearings focused on the UPSC’s transparency protocols. A judicial Bench, composed of Justices PS Narasimha and Atul S Chandurkar, specifically lauded the UPSC’s decision to revise its approach. The Court also acknowledged the instrumental roles played by senior advocate Jaideep Gupta and advocate Pranjal Kishore in driving this crucial reform. The Justices characterized this collaborative effort as effective “participatory adversarialism.”
Throughout these legal proceedings, petitioners, notably Himanshu Kumar, challenged the rationale behind the UPSC’s delay in releasing exam-related data. They questioned why marks, cut-off scores, and answer keys were withheld until the completion of the entire multi-stage examination process. Petitioners argued that the early publication of provisional answer keys would provide candidates with a fair opportunity to identify and seek genuine corrections for any errors. The Supreme Court further clarified that any remaining issues or disputes raised by candidates could be directly escalated to the respective High Courts for swift resolution.
UPSC’s Policy Evolution
Initially, the UPSC resisted the proposal for early key disclosure. In its first affidavit, submitted on May 13 , the Commission formally opposed the idea. It cautioned the Court that releasing keys prematurely might lead to confusion among candidates and introduce unforeseen delays into the established examination timeline.
However, the Commission later reconsidered its position. On September 20 , the UPSC filed a subsequent affidavit informing the Supreme Court of a “conscious and well-considered decision.” This decision confirmed the new policy: provisional answer keys would be released shortly after the Civil Services Preliminary Examination. The Hindu newspaper notably reported on this pivotal policy change by the Commission.
Revised Objection Process for Candidates
Under the new system, candidates gain the ability to submit formal objections against the provisional answer keys. Each objection submitted must be substantiated with robust evidence, requiring support from at least three distinct and reliable sources. Objections failing to meet this evidentiary standard will face immediate rejection.
All objections deemed valid will proceed to a thorough review by a dedicated panel of subject matter experts. These experts will meticulously evaluate the challenges against the provisional key. The UPSC will then finalize the official answer key based on the conclusive recommendations from this expert panel. The results for the preliminary examination will be computed and declared utilizing this approved, expert-validated version of the answer key. Despite these changes, the final answer key, encompassing all post-objection adjustments, will continue to be officially published only after the entire Civil Services examination cycle has been successfully completed.