UPSC aspirants continue protest, demand scrapping of CSAT

August 5, 2014

New Delhi, Aug 5: Scores of UPSC aspirants today continued their protest demanding scrapping of CSAT, a day after the government announced that English marks in the test will not be included for gradation or merit in the civil services preliminary examination.

The aspirants, who had been protesting against the CSAT format in Mukherjee Nagar of north Delhi for the past 26 days, have now shifted their base to Jantar Mantar.

Protestors said they would continue their fight unless Centre doesn't scrap CSAT completely. AAP leader Yogendra Yadav was also present at the protest site.

"We are not satisfied with the government's announcement regarding UPSC exams. Government has not fulfilled its promise by proposing such changes. We want Modi-led government to scrap this test completely," Pawan, a protestor, said.

Buckling under pressure of street protests, government had yesterday announced that English marks in CSAT-II will not be included for gradation or merit in the civil services preliminary examination.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) had said that it will issue a notification to reflect the changes announced by the government which the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) will implement.

The civil services preliminary examination will be held as scheduled on August 24 with the changes announced by government including non-inclusion of English marks in gradation of candidates.

There are two compulsory papers of 200 marks each in the civil services preliminary examination. These papers are also known as CSAT I and CSAT II.

The CSAT-II paper carries questions on comprehension, interpersonal skills including communication skills, logical reasoning and analytical ability, decision-making and problem- solving, general mental ability, basic numeracy, and English language comprehension skills (of Class X level).

The CSAT pattern was implemented from 2011. The civil services examination is conducted in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- to choose candidates for Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others.

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Over 58 lakh names dropped from draft voter list in Bengal ahead of polls

News Network

December 16,2025

The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

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