The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has decided to allow candidates appearing for the civil services preliminary examinations an option to change their centers in wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Along with the option to change centers for the civil service preliminary exams, which is supposed to take place on October 4, the option to change the centers for the civil services (main) examination and the Indian Forest Service (main) examination has also been granted.

In a statement, the UPSC said, “Keeping in view the large number of candidates of the civil services (preliminary) examination, 2020 (including the Indian Forest Service (preliminary) examination, 2020) and requests received from the candidates for changing their centers, the Commission has decided to give an opportunity to them to submit their revised choice of center.”

The window of submitting the revised choice of Centers by the candidates will be operational in two phases i.e. 7th-13th July, 2020 (6 PM) and 20th-24th July, 2020 (6 PM) on the Commission’s website https://upsconline.nic.in.

The Commission said, “The candidates may please note that their requests for change in the centers will be considered based on the principle of ‘first-apply-first-allot’ basis (which is followed in all the examinations of the Commission and was mentioned in the examination notices of the civil services (preliminary) examination, 2020 and Indian Forest Service examination, 2020) and once the capacity of a particular center is attained, the same will be frozen.”

Initially, this year’s civil services preliminary examination was scheduled to be held on May 31, but it had to be postponed to October 4, due to the pandemic. The UPSC has also decided to make a ‘withdrawal window’ available for the candidates on the Commission’s website during the period from 1st-8th August, 2020 in order to allow them to withdraw their application from the test. The Commission’s statement said, “Candidates must note that once the application has been withdrawn by the candidate, it cannot be revived in future under any circumstances.”