Civil Services aspirants from Jharkhand have lent their support to the ongoing controversy against Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) and have maintained the position held by many across the country that the pattern should be abrogated to create a level playing field for students opting to write the examination in Hindi medium.
The protest over CSAT has some valid justification behind it feel the aspirants who have opted for Hindi medium of writing the examination for the most prestigious jobs in India. For thousands burning midnight oil to crack the examination the new pattern introduced in 2011 has inherent discrepancies that stand in contrast to the principle of maintaining similar standard of examination for students of all languages.
“This is no more the case. Since the system was introduced candidates with technical or professional background have gained upper hand in the selection process. So the demand to do away with the pattern of examination is absolutely justified,” said Ajit Kumar a Civil Services aspirant.
Protestors believed the newly-introduced CSAT has sullied the significance of India's toughest examination which takes about a year to complete. Protestors asserted that CSAT is more like playing with the future of UPSC aspirants of Hindi medium by creating a condition of partiality for the candidates of the medium.
“Percentage of successful students from rural areas who mostly opt for Hindi medium of answering questions is on a continuous decline since CSAT was introduced. The terms in English are easier for the candidates of the medium to understand whereas the Hindi translation of English phrases and words are very difficult to comprehend,” maintained another student Aashish Kasyap.
However, students see a ray of hope in the NDA government’s suggestion to Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to postpone the Civil Services preliminary exam scheduled for August 24. Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh had said the government wanted to postpone the CS-exams till clarity was reached on the issue of syllabus for the prelims examination. “You will be surprised to know that each year beginning from 2011 a topper’s score is continuously coming down,” pointed out Kashyap.
The CSAT comprises two papers of two-hour duration each and of 200 marks each containing multiple choice and objective types of question.
Notwithstanding the justifications for brouhaha, educationists term it an unbecoming of an IAS officer and gross denial of a reality that English is a common thread uniting the country with diverse language. Also, being the single language that is spoken by people of all tongue makes calls for a greater thrust on it in future as well.
“English is a common language. They (aspirants) want to qualify for India’s topmost job but they have downgraded it by staging protests and tearing placards,” said Former Pro-VC of Ranchi University VP Sharan.