Letter to the Editor: APSC Mains

The APSC has recently uploaded the hall tickets for the upcoming mains examination, which is to be held from July 8 to July 10 this year. In one of the points in their instruction list, they mentioned that the examinees have to use a ballpoint pen only. Now, this rule of using only a ballpoint pen is understandable in the prelims because the OMR recognition system recognizes only circles darkened with a ballpoint pen and may malfunction if any other ink is used. Handwriting is one of the crucial factors in the main examination, and it is seen that answers written with an ink pen or gel pen look more presentable than those written with a ballpoint pen. There is also no such rule in the UPSC where the examinees have to use only a ballpoint pen. The APSC cannot be mulish every time by setting their own rules. It is my earnest request to the APSC to drop this rule.

A concerned examinee