Prayagraj: The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) on Thursday kicked off the recruitment process for the coveted Provincial Civil Services (PCS)-2026 examination by issuing its detailed notification and inviting online applications for nearly 500 vacancies across various state govt departments.The application window will remain open till July 27, while candidates will be allowed to make corrections in their application forms till Aug 3. The commission has made One Time Registration (OTR) mandatory for all applicants and advised those yet to complete the process to obtain their OTR number at least 72 hours before submitting the application.The commission clarified that the final number of vacancies may vary depending on requisitions received from govt departments.The examination will pave the way for appointments to key administrative posts, including deputy collector, deputy superintendent of police (DSP), block development officer (BDO), assistant regional transport officer (ARTO), commercial tax officer, naib tehsildar, district social welfare officer, district panchayat raj officer, food safety officer, excise inspector, labour enforcement officer, assistant labour commissioner and principal of Govt Inter Colleges, among others.Candidates must be between 21 and 40 years of age as on July 1, 2026. The commission has retained the existing relaxation norms, granting five years’ age relaxation to candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, eligible sportspersons and state govt employees, while persons with disabilities will be eligible for up to 15 years’ relaxation.In a notable move, the commission has extended special benefits to research fellows under the Chief Minister Fellowship Programme. Candidates who have successfully completed the fellowship will receive additional weightage in the main examination along with age relaxation of up to three years, depending on the duration of the fellowship.The selection process will be held in three stages — Preliminary Examination, Main Examination and Personality Test. The preliminary examination will comprise two objective-type papers of 200 marks each, while the descriptive main examination will consist of eight compulsory papers, including General Hindi, Essay and six General Studies papers. The final merit will be determined after a 100-mark interview.
