Video Editor: Abhishek Sharma
As the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) objected to a plea seeking postponement of 2020 civil services prelims amid COVID-19, it told the Supreme Court on Monday, 28 September, that it would not be possible to defer the exams beyond 4 October.
The apex court was hearing a plea filed by UPSC aspirants calling for a postponement of the exams in view of the COVID-19 outbreak as well as the flood situation in various parts of the country.
Some civil service aspirants have several arguments to make on why the 2020 UPSC prelims scheduled on 4 October should be deferred.
A disappointed UPSC aspirant from Tamil Nadu reasoned why she like many other would skip the exam.
“Conducting exams at this point of time is going to create panic among aspirants. And there might come a situation where most of the aspirants might skip it just because of the fear of corona. Even I am one of them because I have a 3-year-old kid and a 60-year-old mother.”UPSC aspirant from Tamil Nadu
Another UPSC aspirant said, "This is not any kind of academic exam. This is just a recruitment exam... So, putting families of 5-6 lakh people at risk by conducting exams for 750 vacancies is not worth it."
A civil service aspirant who is also a Jammu and Kashmir administrative officer and is currently working in the Kishtwar district said:
“Apart from our regular duties we have been given the job of managing quarantine centres and all our leaves have been cancelled. Last time I studied quite well, but this time it was next to impossible for me to get time for my studies.”
Several other aspirants, some of whom are COVID warriors, Kashmiri students restricted with 2G internet, or those who find it difficult to reach their centres, cited reasons why it's nearly impossible to prepare and appear for the prelims on 4 October.
Nearly 6 lakh aspirants, test centres across 72 cities and a surge in COVID-19 cases – is the risk worth it?
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