Overview
- The Union Public Service Commission completed 100 years with a two-day Manthan programme that culminated at Bharat Mandapam on October 1, 2026 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a commemorative coin, a postage stamp and a book of landmark judgements.
- Modi urged selection to prioritise 'Nation First' and 'Citizen First' and said exams should assess why candidates want to join public service rather than only testing factual knowledge.
- UPSC chairman Ajay Kumar presented a three‑point vision of Trust, Transparency and Technology and advocated exam reforms to test reasoning, judgement and problem solving instead of coached answers.
- The Commission signalled continued digital reforms by scaling AI-enabled facial authentication and other online tools to protect exam integrity and expand access for candidates.
- Officials stressed the centenary as a platform for debate not immediate rule changes and suggested reforms could shorten exam cycles, improve time certainty for candidates and shape how the civil service adapts to AI and faster citizen expectations.