Editor,

I would like to draw the attention of the Arunachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) towards the need for greater moderation and standardisation in the evaluation of mains examination papers.

The recent proposal to make permanent resident certificate (PRC), Arunachal Pradesh Scheduled Tribe (APST) certificate and proficiency in at least one local language mandatory for recruitment is an appreciable step. It reflects the distinctive demographic, cultural and constitutional character of Arunachal and can help ensure that state recruitment remains responsive to the interests of its people.

At the same time, recruitment reform should also address the manner in which candidates are evaluated after they enter the examination process. The concerns expressed by aspirants regarding variations in marks across optional subjects deserve the commission's careful consideration.

In particular, the 2024 APPSC mains has generated discussion among aspirants regarding exceptionally high scores, including reports of candidates securing 190+ marks out of 250 in general studies. Outstanding candidates certainly deserve outstanding marks; however, when exceptionally high scores coexist with substantially lower scores for a large proportion of candidates, it is reasonable to seek greater clarity on the consistency and moderation of evaluation.

Similarly, appropriate statistical moderation is necessary wherever unusually large deviations are identified. Such mechanisms would not undermine merit. On the contrary, they would help ensure that merit is measured more accurately.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has over the years developed considerable institutional credibility in conducting one of India's most competitive examinations. While the APPSC need not mechanically replicate the UPSC system, it can certainly examine relevant best practices in evaluation, standardisation and moderation and adapt them to the requirements of the state.

The objective should be simple: similar levels of performance should be assessed on broadly comparable standards, irrespective of the subject chosen or the evaluator involved.

This becomes especially important when the difference of a few marks can determine whether an aspirant enters the final selection list or remains outside it.

The proposed recruitment reforms concerning PRC, APST certification and local-language proficiency are significant because they address who should be eligible to compete for state services. But the question of how those eligible candidates are evaluated is equally important.

A recruitment system cannot be considered completely fair merely because its eligibility criteria are transparent. Its credibility also depends on whether the examination is conducted impartially, answer scripts are evaluated consistently, and the final merit list accurately reflects relative performance.

The APPSC therefore has an opportunity to look at recruitment reform in a comprehensive manner. Alongside changes in eligibility and recruitment rules, it should also periodically review its evaluation and moderation practices.

Competitive examinations are ultimately institutions of public trust. Every candidate who appears for them accepts that someone else will eventually be selected. What candidates expect in return is not a guarantee of selection, but a reasonable assurance that they are given an equal opportunity and assessed by a consistent standard. Those who are selected should be able to take pride in their achievement. Those who are not selected should also be able to accept the outcome with the confidence that the process was fair.

That is why a conversation about moderation should not be viewed as criticism of the commission. It should instead be seen as a constructive demand for greater institutional credibility, transparency and confidence in the recruitment system.

The proposed recruitment reforms are certainly a step in the right direction. But reforms should not stop at eligibility. If Arunachal wants a recruitment system that is locally rooted, merit-based and trusted by its people, then fair eligibility must be accompanied by fair evaluation.

The APPSC should therefore give moderation in paper evaluation the attention it deserves - not to equalise marks, but to ensure that every mark awarded represents merit as accurately and consistently as possible.

After all, the integrity of a recruitment process is measured not only by who makes it to the final list, but by how fairly every candidate was evaluated before that list was prepared.

The voice of aspirants