UPSC CUTOFF MARKS

The Union Public Service Commission's (UPSC) culture of secrecy is not necessarily shared by the various state public service commissions (PSCs). In fact, most state PSCs are more forthcoming with information than the UPSC and are working on increasing transparency levels. Interestingly, the PSCs of states labelled backward, such as UP, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh seem more progressive when it comes to sharing information on results with candidates than the so-called progressive states like Kerala or Tamil Nadu. The PSCs of most major states reveal cut-off marks to candidates. In some cases, as in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, they reveal the cut-off marks of not only the mains but also the preliminary examination. Most states do not share the marks of the preliminary exam with the candidates, but both UP and Andhra do. In fact, UP puts up the cut-off marks on its website for one month. Yet, UPSC claims in its petition filed in court that the efficacy of the examination system would be impaired if the cut-off marks are revealed. While UPSC might argue that the scaling system is highly confidential and that it constitutes intellectual property of the commission, most state commissions that use any kind of scaling system are sharing it with the candidates.FROM-TIMES OF INDIA.