IPS (The Indian Police Service) : -

The service of IPS officer has the difficult and unenviable task of maintaining public safety and security. A job that not only demands mental alertness and physical fitness but puts all of one's abilities to the harshest of tests while dealing with the ever increasing crime graph. However, the role of the IPS has changed over the years. Now, IPS is not solely concerned with the maintenance of law and order in the traditional sense. Its ambit now includes listening to public grievances regarding neglect or delay of police action, formulating strategies for various programmes associated with public welfare, and taking preventive steps to ensure that elements disrupting social peace are dealt with swiftly and ruthlessly.

To fulfill these functions, the service has been divided into many functional departments: Crime Branch, Criminal Investigation Department or CID, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and Traffic Bureau. A number of central policing agencies are also headed by the IPS including the Intelligence Bureau, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Cabinet Secretariat Security, Border Security Force (BSF) and the Central Reserve Police force (CRPF).

To serve in the Indian Police Service one has to pass the Civil Services Examination or elevated from the state cadre, which is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission, every year. This examination is a common examination conducted for selection to the other one of the other All India Services, viz. the Indian Administrative Service, as well as various other Group A and Group B services under the Central Government. (The recruitment examination for the third All India Service- the Indian Forest Service- is conducted separately by the UPSC.) This examination consists of three stages.

At stage one, there is an objective type examination called the Preliminary examination. This is a qualifying examination and only the candidates who clear this can appear for the next stage called the Main examination. In the Main examination each candidate has to select two optional subjects, apart from which all candidates have to take a General Studies, Essay and compulsory language exam. The Main examination is a very intensive subjective type examination for which marks are awarded.
A shortlist is prepared on the basis of the Main examination and these candidates can compete in the third and final stage of exam called the Viva voce or the Interview. The marks of the Main examination and the Interview are combined to prepare a final merit list of selected candidates. The officers of the Indian Police Service (IPS) are trained mainly at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy in the city of Hyderabad.

THE INDIAN POLICE SERVICE (APPOINTMENT BY COMPETITIVE EXAMINATION) REGULATIONS, 1955
In pursuance of Rule 7 of the Indian Police Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1954, the Central Government, in consultation with the State Governments and the Union Public Service Commission, hereby makes the following regulations, namely:-

1. Short title.—These regulations may be called the Indian Police Service (Appointment by Competitive Examination) Regulations, 1955.
2. Definitions.-
(1) In these regulations, unless the context, otherwise requires,-
(a) ‘Available vacancies’ means the vacancies in the Service which, as determined by the Central Government under the provisions of sub-rule (2) of rule 4 of the Recruitment Rules, are to be filled on the results of an examination,
(b) ‘Commission’ means the Union Public Service Commission;
(c) ‘examination’ means a combined competitive examination consisting of a preliminary examination and a main examination for recruitment to the Service held under sub-rule (1) of rule 7 of the Recruitment Rules and includes a combined competitive examination for recruitment to the Service and such other Service or Services as may be specified by the Central Government from time to time;
(d) ‘List’ means the list of candidates prepared under regulation 7;
(e) ‘Recruitment Rules’ means the Indian Police Service (Recruitment) Rules, 1954;
(f) ‘Schedule’ means the Schedule appended to these regulations;
(g) ‘Scheduled Castes’ and ‘Scheduled Tribes’ shall have the same meanings as are assigned to them by clauses (24) and (25) respectively of Article 366 of the Constitution of India; and
(h) ‘Service’ means the Indian Police Service.
2(2) All other words and expressions used in these regulations and not defined shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Recruitment Rules.
3. Holding of Examination :-
( 1) The examination shall be conducted by the Commission in the manner notified by the Central Government from time to time.
(2) The dates on which and the places at which the examination shall be held, shall be fixed by the Commission.
4. Conditions of Eligibility:-In order to be eligible to compete at the examination, a candidate must satisfy the following conditions, namely:-
(i) Nationality.-
(a) He must be a citizen of India, or,
(b) He must belong to such categories of persons as may, from time to time, be notified in this behalf by the Central Government.
(ii) Age: - He must have attained the age of 21 and not attained the age of 30 on the first day of August of the year in which the examination is held:
Provided that the upper age limit may be relaxed in respect of such categories of persons as may from time to time, be notified in this behalf by the Central
Government, to the extent and subject to the conditions notified in respect of each category:
Provided further that the upper age limit shall be raised to 31 years for the candidates appearing at the examination to be conducted by the Commission in 1990.
(iii) Educational Qualifications.- He must hold a degree of any University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as Universities under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956, or a foreign University approved by the Central Government from time to time, or possess a qualification which has been recognized by the Central Government [for the purpose of admission to the examination]:

Provided that-
in the exceptional cases the Commission may, [ ] treat as qualified a candidate who though not possessing the qualification prescribed in this clause, has passed examinations conducted by other institutions of a standard which, in the opinion of the Commission, justifies the admission of the candidate to the examination; and

(b) Candidates who are otherwise qualified but have taken degrees from foreign Universities, which are not approved by the Central Government, may also be admitted to the examination at the discretion of the Commission.
Provided further that a candidate may be permitted to take the preliminary examination while studying for his degree so long as by a date to be notified by the Commission, the candidate produces proof of pass in the degree course for being eligible to take the final examination during that year;

(iii-a) Attempts at the examination.-Unless covered by any of the exceptions that may from time to time be notified by the Central Government in this behalf, every candidate appearing for the examination after 1st January 1990, who is otherwise eligible, shall be permitted four attempts at the examination; and the appearance of a candidate at the examination will be deemed to be an attempt at the examination irrespective of his disqualification or cancellation, as the case may be, of his candidature. Explanation-An attempt at a preliminary examination shall be deemed to be an attempt at the examination, within the meaning of this rule.

(iv) Fees. - He must pay the fees prescribed by the Commission.

5. Disqualification for Admission-Any attempt on the part of a candidate to obtain support for his candidature by any means may be held by the Commission to disqualify him for admission to the examination.

6. Commission's Decision Final.-The decision of the Commission as to the eligibility or otherwise of a candidate for admission to the examination shall be final and no candidate to whom a certificate of admission has not been issued by the Commission shall be admitted to the examination.

7. List of successful candidates.-(1) Subject to the provision of sub-regulation (2) the Commission shall forward to the Central Government a list arranged in order of merit of the candidates who have qualified by such standards as the Commission may determine.

7(2) The candidates, belonging to any of the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes may, to the extent of the number of vacancies reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, be recommended by the Commission by a relaxed standard, subject to the fitness of these candidates for selection to the Service:

Provided that the candidates, belonging to Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, who have been recommended by the Commission without resorting to the relaxed standard referred to in this sub-regulation, shall not be adjusted against the vacancies reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.

8. Appointments from the List-Subject to the provisions of regulations 9, 10, 12 and 13, candidates will be considered for appointment to the available vacancies in the order in which their names appear in the list.

9. Reservation of vacancies for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Candidates.-

(1) In pursuance of rule 7 of the Recruitment Rules, 15 per cent and 71/2 per cent of the available vacancies shall be reserved for candidates who are members of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively.

9 (2) in filling the vacancies so reserved, candidates who are members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, shall be considered for appointment in the order in which their names appear in the list.

9(3) If sufficient number of candidates, who are members of Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes, are not available for filling all the vacancies so reserved, the vacancies not so filled shall be treated as backlog vacancies and carried forward to the subsequent examinations until they are filled. The backlog vacancies shall be treated as a distinct group separate from the current vacancies, reserved under sub-regulation (1), for candidates, who are members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.

10. Disqualification for Appointment on grounds of plural Marriage.
- (1) No person-
Who has entered into or contracted a marriage with a person having a spouse living, or Who, having a spouse living, has entered into or contracted a marriage with any person, Shall be eligible for appointment to the Service: Provided that the Central Government may, if satisfied that such marriage is permissible under the personal law applicable to such person and the other party to the marriage and there are other grounds for so doing, exempt any person from the operation of this sub-regulation.

11. Disciplinary action- A candidate who is or has been declared by the Commission to be guilty of.-

(i) Obtaining support for his candidature by the following means, namely:-
(a) Offering illegal gratification to, or
(b) Applying pressure on, or
(c) Blackmailing, or threatening to blackmail any person connected with the conduct of the examination, or;
(ii) Impersonating, or
(iii) Procuring impersonation by any person, or
(iv) Submitting fabricated documents or documents which have been tampered with, or
(v) Making statements which are incorrect or false, or suppressing material information, or
(vi) Resorting to the following means in connection with his candidature for the examination, namely:-

(a) Obtaining copy of question paper through improper means;
(b) Finding out the particulars of the persons connected with secret work relating to the examination;
(c) Influencing the examiners, or,
(vii) Using unfair means during examination, or
(viii) Writing obscene matters or drawing obscene sketches in the scripts, or
(ix) Misbehaving in the examination hall including tearing off the scripts, provoking fellow examinees to boycott examination, creating a disorderly scene and the like, or
(x) Harassing or doing bodily harm to the staff employed by the Commission for the conduct of their examination; or
(xi) Violating any of the instructions issued to candidates along with their admission certificates permitting them to take the examination, or
(xii) Attempting to commit or, as the case may be abetting the commission of all or any of the acts specified in the foregoing clauses: may, in addition to rendering himself liable to criminal prosecution, be liable --

(a) To be disqualified by the Commission from the examination for which he is a candidate; and or
(b) To be debarred either permanently or for a specified period-
(i) By the Commission, from any examination or selection held by them;
(ii) By the Central Government from any employment under them; and
(c) If he is already in service under Government to disciplinary action under the appropriate rules:
Provided that no penalty under clause (a) or clause (b), as the case may be, shall be imposed except after-

(i) Giving the candidate an opportunity of making such representation in writing as he may wish to make in that behalf; and
(ii) Taking the representation, if any submitted by the candidate, within the period allotted to him, into consideration.
12. Disqualification for Appointment on Medical Grounds.-No candidate shall be appointed to the service who after such medical examination as the Central Government may prescribe is not found to be in good mental or bodily health and free from any mental or physical defect likely to interfere with the discharge of the duties of the service.

13. Inclusion in List Confers no Right to Appointment.-The inclusion of a candidate's name in the list confers no right to appointment unless the Central Government is satisfied, after such enquiry as may be considered necessary, that the candidate having regard to his character and antecedents is suitable in all respects for appointment to the Service