The UPSC civil services examination results declared on Friday have brought good news for Assam. Over a dozen candidates from the state have cleared the final stage of the combined examinations and made it to the civil services, with one of them securing a position among the top ten. Interestingly, it was last year too that 13 or 14 candidates from Assam had cracked it, with one of them occupying the 41st spot. The UPSC has recommended for appointment of as many as 759 candidates for various categories of services; among them 180 have been recommended for the IAS, 30 for the IFS, 150 for the IPS, and the others for various Group A and Group B Services. While it is not possible to ascertain exactly how many candidates from Assam had taken the preliminary examination and had cleared it to sit in the mains examination, it is a fact that the number of candidates from Assam aiming to make the central civil services a career continue to be pathetically low. Though no agency has yet made any study to find out the reasons behind the low number of aspirants from Assam, there is a general feeling that there is no culture in the state that could encourage and inspire young students to look forwards towards the UPSC. The teaching community across the state, including those who teach in the high school level, have to be probably oriented towards talking about career to the students from a young age. There is a general lack of awareness among both students and teachers across Assam that central services, and particularly the IAS, IPS and other such top services are out of reach of our students. The reality, however, is that a sizeable number of individuals from the state who have made it to the central civil services in the past were from humble backgrounds and from the district-level Assamese-medium schools. Most candidates say from states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha etc too come from schools that impart education in the mother tongue. The only difference probably is that there is a big push from the families and the communities that all brilliant students should make the UPSC their target. There was a time when the government of Assam was not concerned about whether students from the state aspired to target the UPSC or not. It was during the first Asom Gana Parishad government in Assam in 1986 that the state government introduced a cash incentive to those candidates who cleared the preliminary round, while facilities were provided in the Assam Administrative Staff College under the supervision of the late Prof Dilip Kumar Barua to provide coaching to the aspiring candidates. Subsequent governments have raised the amount of financial support, while a reputed coaching institute has been brought to Guwahati to provide coaching. It is, however, yet to be ascertained whether this particular institute which gets some financial support from the government of Assam has actually helped guide Assam candidates to crack the UPSC exams. In the meantime, however, it is a very good sign that several enterprising local persons have established a few coaching centres in the state to help the aspirants prepare for the UPSC examinations. The society in general and the government in particular should make it a point to make the students from the high school stage oriented towards aiming towards the UPSC. A state like Assam requires a large number of local persons in the IAS and IPS. There is no second opinion that officers who belong to the state will have more dedication and love for the state, as also a better understanding of the issues that continue to affect the state.