WBPSC Exam – All You Need To Know Before You Start Preparation

The West Bengal Public Service Commission(WBPSC) conducts the state-level Civil Services Exam to recruit eligible candidates in various administrative departments under the West Bengal Government. WBPSC exam is also known by names such as West Bengal Civil Service (Executive), PSCWB, and WBCS(West Bengal Civil Services).

The WBPSC exam is conducted annually for recruitment in various groups of services.

The different groups, Group A, Group B (only for West Bengal Police Service ), Group C, and Group D, are based on the choice and merit of scored numbers. The WBCS (Executive) officers belong to Group A.

The entire WBCS recruitment process takes up to one and a half years. The number of vacancies varies every year. In the year 2018, 200 candidates passed the prestigious exam with flying colors.

Table Of Contents hide

I. Pattern Of WBPSC Exam

I.I. WBPSC Prelims

I.II. WBPSC Mains

I.II.I. 38 Optional Subject List For WBPSC exam

II. How To Apply For WBPSC

III. Groups Of Services Under WBPSC exam

IV. Choice of Groups of Services and Allotment

V. WBPSC Exam Eligibility Criteria

VI. WBPSC Exam Age Criteria

VII. Reservations In WBPSC Exam

VIII. WBPSC Exam Center

IX. What is the salary of a WBCS officer?

Pattern Of WBPSC Exam

The WBCS exam consists of two parts :

Written Examination
Interview

The written exam is held in two successive stages

Preliminary Examination (Objective MCQ Type) – 1 paper
Main Examination (Both Objective MCQ Type and Conventional Type) – 6 compulsory and 2 optional(Only for A & B group)

Candidates selected on the results of the Preliminary(prelims) Examination are allowed admission to the Main Examination.

Candidates who pass the main exam receive the call for an Interview.

WBPSC Prelims

The exam has only one paper. The questions are asked from the below topics.

English Composition
General Science
Current Events of National and International Importance
History of India
Geography of India with reference to West Bengal
Indian Polity and Economy
Indian National Movement
General Mental Ability

Prelims exam is of 2½ hours duration. The marks of the prelims exam are not considered for final selection. Only those candidates who qualify for the prelims exam in a year are eligible for admission to the main exam of that year.

WBPSC Mains

The exam has six compulsory papers for all groups(A, B, C, D)

Paper 1: Bengali/Hindi/Urdu/Nepali/Santali Language

Paper 2: English Language

Paper 3: General Studies-I: History & Geography

Paper 4: General Studies-II: Science & General Knowledge

Paper 5: Polity & Economy

Paper 6: Arithmetic and Test of Reasoning.

For Group A and B, Candidates have to choose an optional subject consisting of two papers.

38 Optional Subject List For WBPSC exam

Bengali, Zoology, Statistics, Sociology, Psychology, Political Science, Physics, Physiology, Philosophy, Medical science, Mechanical Engineering, Management, Mathematics, Chemistry, Botany, Law, History, Geology, Geography, Electrical Engineering, Economics, Computer Science, Commerce & Accountancy, Civil Engineering, Anthropology, Animal husbandry – veterinary science, Agriculture, Comparative literature, Santali, Urdu, French, Persian, Arabic, Pali, English, Sanskrit, Hindi

Answer in all the papers, compulsory and optional, must be written either in English or in Bengali, except the language paper.

If a candidate fails to secure qualifying marks in any paper/subject, then the score of that paper/subject is not considered in calculating his / her aggregate.

How To Apply For WBPSC

WBPSC release the notification for the exam on their official website wbpsc.gov.in. Candidates have to log in and fill the form once the notice comes out for that particular year.

The commission generally releases the notification in November. Usually, the Prelims Exam takes place in January and Mains in July/August.

The Application Fee is around Rs. 200. It can be paid online through net banking or via credit/debit card. Offline payment at the bank counter is also available.

SC/ST candidates of West Bengal and PWD candidates can apply for free.

Groups Of Services Under WBPSC exam

Group A

West Bengal Civil Services (Executive) WBCS (Exe)
West Bengal Revenue Service (WBRS)
West Bengal Co-operative Service (WBCoS)
West Bengal Labour Service (WBLS)
West Bengal Food and Supplies Service (WBF&FS)
West Bengal Employment Service (WBES)

Group B

West Bengal Police Service (WBPS)

Group C

West Bengal Correctional Home Services
Joint Block Development Officer (Jt. BDO)
Deputy Assistant Director of Consumers and Fair Business Practices
West Bengal Junior Social Welfare Service (WBJSWS)
Assistant Canal Revenue Officer (Irrigation) (ACRO–Irrigation)
West Bengal Sub-ordinate Land Revenue Services, Grade-I (SLRO)
Assistant Commercial Tax Officer (ACTO)
Chief Controller of Correctional Service (CCCS)

Group D

Inspector of Co-operative Societies (ICoS)
Panchayat Development Officer (PDO)
Rehabilitation Officer (RO)

Choice of Groups of Services and Allotment

A candidate may compete for one or more of the four groups of services, viz., A, B, C, and D. The candidate have to submit one application form mentioning his choice of group(s).

Candidates appearing for the interview are required to specify the order of their preference for the posts or services included in the Group or Groups for which they have applied. Thereafter, no alteration is allowed in the choice of preference.

Only one interview is held for different groups. Marks are awarded according to different services against the allotted score for the interview.

Allotment of candidates is made in order of merit and according to the number of vacancies.

WBPSC Exam Eligibility Criteria

Few major takeaway points from official WBCS notification concerning eligibility are:

A candidate must be an Indian citizen
A degree of a recognized university
A candidate should be able to read, speak and write in Bengali

WBPSC Exam Age Criteria

WBCS Age Limit as of January 1 of the year of the examination

Group A and C – 21 -36 years
Group B – 20 -36 years (For West Bengal Police Service only)
Group D – 21 – 39 years

The upper age limit relaxation for S.C., S.T. & B.C. (Non-Creamy Layer) candidates of West Bengal

five years for S.C. & S.T. candidates
three years for B.C. (Non-Creamy Layer) candidates.

For Persons with Disabilities (PWD), the upper age limit is relaxable up to 45 years. Candidates of other States are treated as general candidates.

Reservations In WBPSC Exam

The benefits of reservation are admissible to S.C./S.T./B.C. (Non-Creamy Layer) candidates of West Bengal only. The S.C./S.T./B.C. candidates of other states are treated as general candidates.

WBPSC Exam Center

The Prelims exam is held at various centers in Kolkata and certain other districts in West Bengal. The Main Exam center is only in Kolkata. The interview is held thereafter in the office of the Public Service Commission, West Bengal, in Kolkata.