Established under Article 315, UPSC is a constitutoinal body, that works as the soul of Indian Civil Services.

Fucnctions Of UPSC:

To put it right from the horse’s mouth – “Under Article 320 of the Constitution of India, the Commission is, inter-alia, required to be consulted on all matters relating to recruitment to civil services and posts.”

And to break it down into bite-sized chunks –

1. Conducting Examinations: The UPSC is solely responsible for conducting Civil Service examinations in India and recruiting Civil Servants.

2. Advisory Role: UPSC advises the Government on any matter referred to the Commission by the President of India.

3. Assisting States : UPSC assists the states in composing and implementing schemes of combined recruitment for any services requiring special qualifications.

4. Additonal Functions:

The UPSC shall be consulted in the matters of :

i) Demands for compensation of legal express obtained by a civil servant in defending proceeding instituted against him.

ii) Matters relating to the interim appointments for a period exceeding one year

iii) Matters of personnel management etc.

5. Interviews for Lateral Entry: The UPSC conducts the interviews to assess the final eligibility of candidates to be selected as Civil Servants.

Constitutional Provisions for Independence and Impartiality:

1. The tenure of the Chairman and memebers of the UPSC is six years (or 65 years age), ensured by Article 316(2).

2. Process of Removal: UPSC’s chaiman can only be removed by the President after an enquiy by the Supreme Court under article 145 (Artile 317)

3. Article 318 protects service conditions of UPSC as a constitutional body

4. Article 322 states that the salaries and pensions of memebers of the commission shall be provided from the Consolidated Funds of India.

5. Under Article 319 the chairman of the UPSC is ineligible for further employment either under the Government of India or under the Government of a State.

6. The UPSC is liable to present an annual report of its functioning to the President under article 323, which is then tabled before each House of the Parliament, where detailed explaination must be given for rejection of UPSC’s recommendations.

With all these functions, and safeguards of those functions, enshrined in the Constitution, the UPSC stands tall as a backbone in maintaing impartiality and in providing me meritocracy in the Indian Civil Services.