Pune: Each year, countless civil service aspirants in Maharashtra dedicate years of their lives to preparing for the highly competitive MPSC exams, driven by the dream of serving as a government officer. Some achieve their goal, but many others come agonizingly close, missing the cut-off by only a few marks. After multiple attempts, several are left disheartened and burdened by years of effort that seem to lead nowhere.
Recently, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) introduced the ‘Pratibha Setu’ initiative to support capable candidates who narrowly miss making the final merit list. Inspired by this, students and academic circles across Maharashtra are now urging the MPSC to follow suit and introduce a similar program.
Creating Alternate Career Paths
UPSC’s Pratibha Setu offers deserving candidates who progress through significant stages of the exam but don’t make the final list an opportunity to connect with alternative job prospects. Given that MPSC exams are modeled after UPSC’s structure, aspirants argue that a comparable support mechanism is equally relevant at the state level.
Students highlight that narrowly missing selection does not imply a lack of skill or diligence. They point out that a small score gap can often separate successful candidates from those who do not advance, and these talented aspirants deserve a second chance.
An Appeal to MPSC
Students and experts believe that if UPSC can support its near-miss candidates, MPSC too can implement a program like Pratibha Setu. The success of UPSC’s initiative — which has been lauded across the nation — demonstrates that many talented candidates deserve career options even if they do not make the final merit list.
A Crucial Safety Net for Aspirants
The absence of a safety net can have serious consequences. Many candidates spend five to ten years preparing, exhausting their eligibility before they can explore other career paths. Once they age out of eligibility and face the realities of the job market, they often struggle to make ends meet.
Most lack the financial resources to establish a business of their own, and without a supportive program, they can easily slip into prolonged uncertainty and financial hardship. To address this, UPSC created the Pratibha Setu to introduce promising candidates to public and private recruiters, preventing years of potential from going to waste.
Building a Talent Pool
Students in Maharashtra are now calling for MPSC to create a dedicated online portal to register candidates who successfully reach advanced stages of the state’s competitive exams. This digital repository would record each candidate’s qualifications, interview experience, and skill set — creating a talent pool accessible to municipal bodies, local self-government offices, public-sector companies, CSR initiatives, and the private sector.
Such a setup could facilitate short-term, project-based, or contractual engagements, helping candidates make productive use of their skills even if they do not secure the traditional civil services posts they initially hoped for.
What Students Recommend for the MPSC Portal:
Develop a dedicated website to maintain candidates’ profiles.
Include their educational background, interview and examination records, and other relevant competencies.
Give access to a range of public and private recruiters — including zilla parishads, municipal bodies, PSUs, CSR initiatives, and companies — for temporary or project-specific roles.
Learning From the UPSC Model
This isn’t the first time UPSC has taken steps to help talented aspirants outside its selection process. In earlier years, UPSC informally referred promising candidates to prospective employers. Under Pratibha Setu, this process is now streamlined and officially recognized — making it easier for both candidates and organizations to connect.
Eligibility Criteria Under UPSC’s Pratibha Setu
The scheme supports those who reach advanced stages but do not make the final cut-off in exams like the Civil Services, Indian Forest Service, Engineering Services, Central Armed Police Forces, Combined Defence Services, Indian Economic and Statistical Services, Combined Medical Services, and the Combined Geoscientist exams.
By creating similar pathways, MPSC can ensure that Maharashtra’s aspirants — despite narrowly missing selection — do not slip into hopelessness, but instead, contribute their talents where they are most needed.
