IAS Exam-Proposed pattern change is discriminatory

                           The UPSC has recently modified the examination pattern for Civil Services Examination, popularly known as IAS examination. Though there are many welcome aspects in the new pattern like more emphasize on general studies, inclusion of moral and ethical values etc the system also has some inherent discrepancies in the name of new regulations. This article exclusively deals with those aspects only as I had found a great deal of mainstream media, both broadcasting and print, concentrate on its positive aspects.
                       Hitherto candidates are permitted to appear in the second level examination, the essay type - Mains Examination, in any language of their choice from amongst the scheduled languages (22 languages in the Schedule-8 of the Indian Constitution). But in the newly announced pattern this is restricted to those candidates who had completed their graduation in those respective languages only. This would certainly impact the professional graduates who appear in Civil Services Exam (CSE) like engineers and doctors as there are a very few colleges that provide such degrees in regional languages.
                         If we take the case of Tamilnadu, only a few years back the State has introduced engineering graduation through Tamil medium and not a single batch has passed out since. The case of arts and science colleges is not much encouraging. Hence it is obvious that students would opt for English medium during their graduation even though they would have had their schoolings in their mother tongue. This would be a de-facto case for students from government run higher secondary institutions, which are predominantly Tamil medium based. Such candidates when they appear for CSE would have a natural proclivity towards their mother tongue and hence a ‘mother-tongue medium’ propensity becomes perforce in the examination.
                        Exacerbating the worries, the new pattern has a new restrictive regulation that ‘a minimum of 25 candidates should opt for a specific language medium for answering the question papers in that language medium. In case there are less than 25 candidates opting for any approved language medium (other than English or Hindi), then those candidates will be required to write their examination either in Hindi or in English only.’ And the rationale for this numerical restriction enumerated in the notification is ‘in the interest of maintaining the quality and standards of examination’. Constitutionally every citizen of India is obliged to develop a scientific temper and the spirit of inquiry, and I find it excessively difficult to fathom such a rationale and its numerical connectivity.
                   This numerical restriction when compounded with the requirement that ‘regional language as a CSE medium only if graduated in that regional language’ would entail that no one would be able to write the examination in any regional languages, for the want of minimum number of candidates. Hence a literature (say B.A Telugu literature) graduate who would have possibly had his graduation in his vernacular language would not be able to write the examination in his vernacular language because not enough candidates might appear in the CSE in his language. As he had had his graduation in a vernacular literature, he might not apparently excel in English and the only other choice is Hindi. What if, if he is a Tamil? Hindi is conspicuous by its absence in Tamilnadu . So neither he can write in Tamil nor in Hindi. This might make a B.A Tamil graduate to look out for a carrier other than the prestigious civil services. The case may be true for all non-Hindi speaking candidates also.
                   Also we have another regulation that only those candidates who had graduated in the literature of a language can opt for the literature of that language as his optional paper in CSE. So the term optional subject becomes fallacious now. The demands of a majority sections of the non-Hindi speaking people that the questions in the preliminary level have to be set in regional languages too, in addition to English and Hindi, or are to be set only in English are also not heeded to for some reasons. All put together it appears ostensibly that this modified examination pattern, discriminates non-Hindi speaking candidates from the Hindi speaking one.
                Finally, I wish to refer to some of the provisions of the reverent institution of Indian Constitution. According to Article:16(1), the state has to  provide equal opportunities to its citizens in matters of public employment. An Official Language Commission has to be set up by the President to look into matters related to official language and the commission shall have due regards to the just claims and the interests of persons belonging to the non-Hindi speaking areas in regard to the public services while giving recommendations, according to Article:344.