The Centre has undertaken a series of administrative and technology-driven reforms to make recruitment through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) more efficient, transparent, time-bound, and secure, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
The reforms are aimed at streamlining the recruitment process and enhancing the credibility and integrity of examinations conducted by the UPSC and SSC, according to the minister.
Singh said interviews for recruitment to Group 'C' and Group 'B' (Non-Gazetted) posts were discontinued with effect from January 1, 2016, to expedite the recruitment process and ensure fairness and objectivity in recruitment examinations.
"Provisional appointment letters can be issued based on self-attestation alongside a six-month time limit for both character and caste certificate verifications. Recruitment for the vacant posts has been undertaken in a time-bound and mission-mode manner by all Ministries/Departments and Government organisations, and several lakh appointment letters have been distributed through National Rozgar Melas launched by the Government from October 2022," he said.
The minister said the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has two recruitment agencies under its administrative control, the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) and the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
Highlighting reforms introduced by the SSC, Singh said the commission has implemented a comprehensive set of administrative and technology-driven measures to strengthen the integrity, transparency, efficiency, and security of its examinations.
"The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has implemented a comprehensive set of administrative and technology-driven reforms to strengthen the integrity, transparency, efficiency, and security of its examinations. Recruitment cycles have been reduced from 15-18 months to an average of 6-8 months with reduced examination tiers and implementation of computer-based examinations, SSC has introduced a secure 'e-Dossier' system for tamper-proof, swift, and secure digital document communication. SSC has also launched a Sliding Mechanism Framework to maximize vacancy utilisation through merit-based post-upgradation. Transparency has been enhanced by publishing tentative and final answer keys, inviting candidate objections, lowering challenge fee, and releasing marks and results online," he said.
On the reforms introduced by the UPSC, Singh said the commission has reduced the recruitment cycle from more than 15 months to about 13 months by introducing several administrative and technology-driven measures.
"The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has introduced several reforms which have reduced the recruitment cycle further from over 15 months to about 13 months. The reforms include a Modular Online Application Portal to simplify the application process, AI-based verification of Civil Services Examination attempts, face authentication to prevent impersonation, and release of provisional answer keys with a structured representation mechanism. UPSC has also established a dedicated candidate helpdesk, expanded examination centres to additional locations, and introduced a guaranteed choice of examination centre for Persons with Disabilities (PwD)," he added.