'Keep a Plan B': MeitY secretary tells IAS aspirants to look for alternate career choices after 2 to 3 attempts

S Krishnan, Secretary of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has suggested that civil services aspirants should always have a plan B if the first few attempts at the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examination are unsuccessful.

Every year, the UPSC examination, one of the most rigorous in the country, sees hundreds of thousands of candidates appearing for limited positions in various government services.

Krishnan, an experienced Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer, encouraged the youth to consider civil services as it provides numerous opportunities for learning and growth.

However, he also emphasised the importance of having an alternative plan. Krishnan said that if the aspirants don't clear the examination within the first two or three attempts, they should consider other career pursuits that interest them.

“The first thing I advise any youngster who comes to me saying I want to appear for the civil services is it’s a wonderful career option. I have had great fun. You can do a variety of things. You learn a lot. You meet a lot of people... You can at times mess up at somebody else’s cost. In every sense of the word, it is a good ride,” the senior Indian Administrative Services (IAS) officer said during the Moneycontrol and CNBC-TV18 AI Alliance NCR Chapter in Gurugram.

“The second piece of advice I give any aspiring civil servant is that please make sure that you have something as your plan B. Don’t spend all the time taking all the attempts till the age you can take. I don’t think that’s worth it.

“If you make it in the first two or three attempts that’s good but after that, pursue something else that would interest you and get away from this. Be sure that you have another space to go,” he said on May 17.

Krishnan also pointed out that people nowadays are engaging in multiple activities, reflecting a sense of progress. He further said that while civil services offer fairly good remuneration, there are several other equally good career choices available for people with a certain level of education.

“Nowadays, compared to when I joined the civil services, you are also paid fairly well. It’s a fairly good career. I failed to convince my son to do it. He wanted to do something else. What the world today offers is that at a particular level of education, there are multiple choices that a person can make. And many of those choices are equally good,” Krishnan said.

Recently, the UPSC declared results for the Civil Services Exam 2023. Out of the 13 lakh applicants who applied for the preliminary screening, 14,624 candidates qualified for the main exam. A total of 1,016 candidates were recommended for various central government services.

This advice comes amidst controversy sparked by economist Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, who stirred up a debate by deeming the UPSC exams as a "waste of time" in a recent podcast.

“Just like Bengal aspired to pseudo intellectuals and union leaders, Bihar aspired to small-time local goon politicians. In an environment where those are the role models, you can either become a local goon, if you don't want to become a local goon, your way out is to basically become a civil servant,” Sanyal said of what he described as the “poverty of aspiration”.