The official notification for the much awaited Kerala Administrative Services (KAS) exam is likely to be out by August. Amid much confusion in the reservation sphere, the Kerala government's cabinet has finally decided to provide reservation in all three streams of the KAS.
The Public Service Commission is expected to release the official notification for filling up posts under the KAS in the upcoming month. The appointments would be made on the basis of a three step selection process which includes preliminary objective type exam, descriptive main exam and an interview.
The preliminary exam is expected to take place early next year. Those who pass this exam would qualify for the main exam. The final rank list would be published only after conducting the interviews for the candidates who qualify the main exam. The results of the main exam would be published without delay as the answer sheets would be evaluated using an onscreen marking technique. The PSC hopes to issue appointment recommendations against the reported vacancies towards the end of next year.
Selection to three streams
The first stream in KAS would involve induction through direct recruitment to the Junior Time Scale. The second stream is allotted for direct recruitment of regular employees or approved probationers in any government departments and the third stream is for candidates holding first Gazetted post or above in departments belonging to schedule 1 and equivalent posts in common categories.
The basic educational qualification to apply for the KAS is a graduate degree from a recognized university. The candidates would be selected to posts coming under above-mentioned streams. Besides direct recruitment, existing government personnel can also apply for redeployment or transfer.
The age limit to apply for direct recruitment is 21 – 32. The age of the candidate would be assessed as on the 1st January of the year in which the notification has been published. For instance, if the notification is published next month, then the age eligibility of the candidate to apply for the posts would be determined with 1st January 2019 as the limit. Other Backward Castes would get age relaxation up to 3 years and scheduled castes/tribes would get up to 5 years. The age limit for stream 2 (permanent officials of the various government departments or approved probationer) is 21 – 40. As per the latest amendments, eligible candidates would get age relaxation in such posts. 50 years is the upper age limit for stream 3 (first grade gazetted officers and above). Though other reservation criteria apply to these posts, the government has not approved any age relaxation.
Around 10 per cent of the second grade gazetted posts in various government departments would be allotted for the entry cadre of the Kerala Administrative Services. The KAS would comprise of officers under the categories of 1) KAS officer junior time scale, 2) senior time scale, 3) selection grade scale and 4) super time grade scale.
The junior time scale is the entry level position of the Kerala Administrative Services. 10 per cent of the second grade gazetted vacancies reported at the 29 government departments and similar posts in other departments would be filled in through KAS. Around 1170 second grade gazetted posts in various departments have been approved for the KAS to make the appointments. 10 per cent of this, which is 117 posts, is allotted for the junior time scale. One-third of the second grade gazetted posts reported at each department, every year, would be reserved for the Kerala Administrative Services.