If you are a young man or woman desirous of serving in the Indian Police, but do not know how to become a police officer in India, this article will make it easier for you by explaining the steps involved in the procedure. Police is a strong part of the administrative machinery that helps in maintaining law and order in the society. It is the responsibility of the police officers to listen to the complaints filed in civil and criminal cases and take action to nab the culprits. They are also required to maintain cordial relations between different communities and to take appropriate action to prevent an eruption of communal violence.
Become a police officer through UPSC exam
Civil services exam
To become a class I police officer in India, you need to pass the civil services exam conducted by the Union Public Service Commission. This central agency conducts a combined civil services exam every year that is held in two stages, the preliminary exam and the main exam. Preliminary exam is conducted in April or May every year. The preliminary exam consists of one subject taken at the graduation level and general studies. The questions in this exam are of objective nature and the candidate has to choose the right answer from four options that are provided. The eligibility to appear in this exam is to have a graduate degree in any stream. If you qualify in the preliminary exam, you have to appear in the main exam that is conducted in the months of November or December every year. Main exam is subjective in nature and deep knowledge of one subject at the graduation level is judged in this exam. The general studies paper is also exhaustive in nature and the knowledge of the candidate in Indian geography, history, politics, environment, social issues, etc. is evaluated.
Interview
After passing the mains exam, the shortlisted candidates are required to face a personal interview. Merit list is prepared where the total marks of the candidate in the main exam and the interview are added. You have to specify in the application form that you want to become a police officer. Only around 200 successful candidates are absorbed into the IPS.
Eligibility criteria to become a Police Officer
To be eligible for the IPS exam, you must be,
• A graduate in any stream
• You must be 21-30 years of age
There are age relaxations for candidates belonging to SC/ST and OBC classes.
Physical requirements to become an IPS officer
• You must have at least 160cm height if you are a male and 145cm if you are a female.
• You must have a chest measurement of at least 84 cm with an expansion of 5 cm if you are a male and 79cm with 5 cm expansion if you are a female.
• You must have eyesight of 6/6 to become an IPS officer.
There is another way to become a police officer in India. You can pass the state level civil services exam called PCS to become a police officer in the state police. You can become a superintendent of Police in the state police after 8-10 years of service though you can enter the police service directly as an SP if you pass the UPSC exam.
Photos By: Jaskirat Singh Bawa (CC BY-SA 2.0), Flying Cloud (CC BY 2.0)
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