UPSC 2020 aspirants demand postponement of civil services exams amid coronavirus pandemic
Amid the call to postpone several exams due to the coronavirus pandemic, UPSC aspirants have put forth their concerns regarding the UPSC 2020 prelims, scheduled to be held on October 4, 2020. Lakhs of aspirants have taken social media by storm and are demanding the postponement of UPSC Prelims-2020. Raising their concerns, several UPSC aspirants have said the positive cases of coronavirus are on a continuous rise across the country and the vaccine is yet not available. In such a situation, the students have said they feel highly unsafe to travel to their respective exam centers.
Several UPSC candidates have also said the elderly members in their family will at greater risk, in case the students are required to travel to different places.
Referring to the availability of exam centers, the UPSC aspirants have said there are not enough centers and so lakhs of students will be made to write their exams in bulk. In such cases, the aspirants have said there would not be proper sanitisation of the examination centers. Some students would also be travelling from containment zones, which would pose a risk for other candidates.
Putting their concerns, students have also said the flood situation in various states and cities is grim. Public transport at such places is unavailable, which would further pose a challenge of reaching to the exam centers safely.
Speaking to India TV Digital, a UPSC aspirant said, "We would undertake at least a day and a half journey (including both transits) for a 2-hour exam. Moreover, routine health disorders like asthma and minor respiratory irritations get exacerbated during the monsoon period. The ire of floods should also be considered. All these make the already grim situation more dangerous."
"The UPSC exam process is a three-stage performance capture structure. After giving prelims, the candidates will have to get ready for Mains within 90 days. In such cases, if a candidate tests positive for coronavirus, they would have to be quarantined for a period of a minimum of 14 days, along with getting the right medication," another UPSC aspirant told India TV.
"Moreover, the UPSC Prelims exam is a two-part exam. Part-1 is conducted in the morning, while Part-2 would be conducted during the afternoon, with an intermittent gap of 3 hours, which is susceptible to flouting of social distancing norms," the UPSC aspirant added.
Many exam centers are already being used as COVID wards, the aspirants have claimed, adding it would be highly dangerous to lead the future human capital into an unknown abyss.
#PostponeUPSC2020 trends on Twitter
Here's what the UPSC aspirants are saying
Earlier on August 21, Supreme Court Advocate Mr. Alakh Alok Srivastava had written to UPSC Chairman, requesting the postponement of UPSC Civil Services 2020 prelims.
In the letter, Advocate Alakh had pointed out the increasing number of COVID-9 cases. He had also pointed out that many of the aspirants who have applied for the UPSC Prelims examination are at present working as frontline COVID warriors. Adding to the situation, the floods in many parts of the country has also made the situation grim and worthy of thought.
