Civil servants are the permanent bureaucracy in India forms an inseparable part of the executive branch of the Government of India, thus providing continuity to the administration. They hold key and strategic positions in the Union Government, States and public-sector undertakings.
Most IAS officers start their careers in the state administration at the sub-divisional level as a sub-divisional magistrate. They are entrusted with the law and order situation of the city along with general administration and development work of the areas under their charge.
Designations held by IAS officers during field posting are as follows:
Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is one of the premier services of Government of India. IAS was constituted in 1946. Prior to that Indian Imperial Service (1893-1946) was in force.
The basic pattern of the cadre system in the Civil Service was established following the recommendations of the Aitchison Commission. Provincial Civil Service constituted in the 1890s was also on the basis of the recommendations of the Aitchison Commission. In 1912 the Islington commission was appointed to study Civil Service reforms. By 1934, the system of administration in India came gradually to consist of seven All India Services and five Central Departments.
IAS posts are filled by direct recruits as well as by promotion /appointment of State Civil Services officers/ Non-State Civil Service officers.
| CATEGORY | ASPIRANT AGE | NO. OF ATTEMPTS |
|---|---|---|
| General | 21 to 32 | 6 |
| OBC | 21 to 35 | 9 |
| SC/ST | 21 to 37 | Unlimited |
| February | Notification | January | Results of the Mains | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June | Prelims | February/March | Personality Test/Interview | |
| July/August | Results of the prelims | April/May | Final Result and Selection | |
| October | Mains |
| Stage | Name | Papers | Paper Pattern | Total Marks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Prelims | 1+1* | Objective | 200 |
| Stage 2 | Mains | 2*+7 | Descriptive | 1750 |
| Personality Test | NA | Oral | 275 |
Scheme and Subjects for the IAS Preliminary and Main Examinations :
Current events of national and international importance. History of India and Indian National Movement.Indian and world Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.
Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc. Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate change – that do not require subject specialization.
General Science.
Paper II- (200 marks) Duration : 2 hours
Comprehension :
Interpersonal skills including communication skills;
Logical reasoning and analytical ability;
Decision Making and problem Solving;
General mental ability;
Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. – Class X level);
Note 1: Paper-II of the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination will be a qualifying paper with minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33%.
Note 2: The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.
Mains Examination
Qualifying Papers (25% marks in each paper required to qualify)
Compulsory Papers (Papers to be counted for merit) Total Marks- 1750
Personality Test- 275 Marks
Paper-A 300 Marks *Indian Language
Paper-B 300 Mark English
Paper-1 250 Marks Essay
Paper-II General Studies-I 250 Marks
( Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society)
( Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations)
(Technology, Economic Development, Bio-diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster Management)
(Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude)