The youth of Kerala have made commendable progress in the civil service examination, which forms a crucial round for selecting officials who play a major role in the country's administration and deciding policy programs. 13 Malayalis made it to the top 100 this time. It is an achievement that has not been possible in recent times. The names of more than 60 Keralites can be found in the first 1000 ranks. Heartiest congratulations to all the candidates and winners. It is not the first time that Keralites have had great success in the civil service examinations. There have been great successes before. Raju Narayana Swamy, Haritha V. Kumar and others got the first rank, Anees Kanmani won first from the nursing category, Sreedhanya made history for the first time from the Adivasi Kurichya category, Sherin Shahana who fell from the terrace and fractured her ribs and sat in a wheelchair and wrote the exam and Akhila Bukhari who lost her hand in an accident all fought tirelessly and achieved victory. This year's winners also include such bright stars. The victories of Sharika, who overcame cerebral palsy, Gokul, who lost his left arm in an accident, and Parvathi, who lost her hand, will surely be counted as bright chapters in the history of competitive exams.
Recently, there has been an increase in the number of civil service candidates in Kerala, which was far behind states like UP, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It is a fact that the Civil Service training Centers operating in different parts of the state at the initiative of the state government, voluntary organizations and private entrepreneurs have a major role in this growth of interest and success. Although there are no civil service villages like Jaunpur in UP, there are centres in Kerala that have come up which provide awareness and initial training right from the school level. Last year, 37 candidates appeared for the interview through the Kerala State Civil Service Academy, while this year it has increased to 54. There has also been a significant increase in the number of top rankers. About 40 of them are professional graduates. Most of those who have qualified from the state have studied engineering. There are also those who have obtained MBBS. Along with that, there are basic degree holders, BAMS, BHMS, Library Science graduates etc. Such representations are generally rare. The OBC representation in the list of 933 persons increased from 263 last year to 303 this year. SC representation increased from 154 to 165 and ST representation increased from 72 to 86. The growing representation of the backward and underprivileged sections is an encouragement to the future generation. These successes also convince that civil service is something that can be reached by anyone belonging to any educational category if favourable conditions and good training are ensured.
It has been said for some time now that people who study in the state curriculum generally lag behind in exams like NEET and JEE. If one looks at the statistics of the last three years, we can find that there is some truth in it. It is a fact that the lax approach to higher secondary studies and assessment is causing setbacks in national competitive examinations for students studying in Kerala syllabus. There has been criticism for ages that Keralites are generally backward in language proficiency and learning too. Amidst such grievances and shortfalls, this success shines brightly. There is an increasing trend of Malayali students taking part in the civil service examination with more interest through better training after graduation. This is reflected in the result this time as well. Apart from medical and engineering studies, civil service should also become the field of choice for Keralite students. There is an oft-quoted statement made by Kerala Chief Minister when he assumed office seven years ago 'Every file is a life, we should understand it and behave'. The bureaucrats themselves are more responsible than the political-administrative leadership for not implementing this properly. It is to be hoped that as they enter their new responsibilities, they will be able to act with the understanding that every matter before them is worth a life.