The Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) has been reviewed after serious irregularities were found in the examination of recruitment for senior posts in the State Planning Board. The controversy has prompted the Commission to suspend the existing list, order a new review of the responses and launch an internal investigation to determine how the termination occurred.The issue has raised concerns about the transparency and integrity of the recruitment process, especially since one person had already been selected based on the list that has now been cancelled.
What caused it Kerala PSC test debate ?
The controversy came to light after K Shyam Krishna, who secured the third position in the recruitment process, received a copy of his scrutinized answers after questioning what was given to him.On checking the records, he found that the answers to Questions 9 to 18 of the 100 descriptive test were not evaluated. He later appealed to the Kerala PSC, which prompted the Commission to confirm the allegations.During the preliminary examination, the PSC said it found that the same 10 questions remained unanswered in the answer books of all 228 test takers, indicating that the failure was not limited to one candidate.
What are the recruitment tests?
The competitive exam was held on July 13, 2023, to register for three positions in the State Planning Board:
- Chief (Industry and Infrastructure)
- Chief (Perspective Planning)
- Chief (Planning Coordination)
These are senior government posts with a monthly salary of around Rs 1.25 lakh. Although the exam was held in 2023, the list was published on May 31, 2025.
What has Kerala PSC done?
After Monday’s meeting, the Kerala PSC announced several corrective measures to deal with the irregularities.The Commission has cleared the list of existing positions and has ordered 10 responses to be re-examined. Based on this review, the revised list will be prepared.The PSC has also ordered a detailed review of all answer scripts to determine whether the failure was due to human error, deliberate tampering or involvement of any employee in the examination.He has also ordered an internal security inquiry, with the agency’s superintendent of police (SP) overseeing the investigation.What happens to roles that have already been created?One nomination had already been made from the list which has now been cancelled. Arun J. Prathap, who secured first rank in the examination, was appointed Chief of the Industry and Infrastructure Division last year.The agency has not yet clarified whether the revised assessment and the new list of positions will have an impact on the positions that have already been created.
The court wants clarification
The controversy escalated after media reports indicated that the alleged failure. The matter reached the Kerala Administrative Tribunal, which has ordered the Kerala government and the Kerala Public Service Commission to submit their explanation within three weeks.With the list of posts cleared, the answer sheets set for fresh scrutiny and scrutiny, the controversy emerged as one of the most important recruitment issues the Kerala PSC has faced in recent years, raising important questions about the process of evaluation and accountability of the institutions.