The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced the results of the prestigious Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2024 on April 22. This year, a total of 1,009 candidates – 725 men and 284 women – have been selected for various services. The number is slightly lower than last year’s (CSE 2023) tally of 1,016 selected candidates but higher than the CSE 2022 results, which saw 933 candidates qualify.
Four days after announcing the CSE 2024 results, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has released the marks of the Civil Services Final Examination along with the cutoff lists for the Prelims, Mains, and the Final selection. A closer analysis of the marks and cutoff data reveals several interesting insights coming to light.
Indian Masterminds presents some interesting facts of the toppers’ marksheets and cut off list.
UPSC MARKS: COMPARISION OF LAST 10 YEARS
This year, only 49 candidates have scored 1,000 marks or more. Among them, 6 belong to the OBC category, 1 to the ST category, 3 to the EWS category, and, surprisingly, none from the SC category. In comparison, the previous year’s examination (CSE-2023) had 70 candidates scoring above 1,000 marks, while in CSE-2022, the number was even higher at 79 candidates.
AIR 2 Got Higher Written Marks Than AIR 1: The topper of CSE-2024, Shakti Dubey from Prayagraj, secured All India Rank 1 with a total of 1,043 marks – 843 in the mains written examination and 200 in the interview.
Interestingly, Harshita Gotal from Haryana, who secured AIR 2, scored higher than Shakti in the written exam. Harshita obtained 851 marks in the written test but scored 187 in the personality test, bringing her total to 1,038 marks – just 5 marks behind the top ranker.
Hemant is Topper in Written: Hemant, who secured the 13th rank, achieved the highest written score with 863 marks in UPSC CSE-2024, followed closely by Komal Punia (rank 6) with 856 marks, and Aditya Vikram Agrawal (rank 9) with 854 marks. A majority of the top-ranked candidates scored over 820 in the written exam, underscoring the significant impact that performance in the Mains exam continues to have on a candidate’s final rank.
| Rank | Roll Number | Name | Marks | Bonus | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0240782 | SHAKTI DUBEY | 843 | 200 | 1043 |
| 2 | 0101571 | HARSHITA GOYAL | 851 | 187 | 1038 |
| 3 | 0867282 | DONGRE ARCHIT PARAG | 848 | 190 | 1038 |
| 4 | 0108110 | SHAH MARGI CHIRAG | 825 | 210 | 1035 |
| 5 | 0833621 | AAKASH GARG | 831 | 201 | 1032 |
| 6 | 0818290 | KOMAL PUNIA | 856 | 176 | 1032 |
| 7 | 6902167 | AAYUSHI BANSAL | 821 | 210 | 1031 |
| 8 | 6613295 | RAJ KRISHNA JHA | 831 | 200 | 1031 |
| 9 | 0849449 | ADITYA VIKRAM AGARWAL | 854 | 173 | 1027 |
| 10 | 5400180 | MAYANK TRIPATHI | 843 | 184 | 1027 |
LOWEST MARKS OF TOPPERS IN LAST 10 YEARS
Surprisingly, Shakti Dubey has secured the lowest total marks for a topper in the past 10 years. Her score is close to that of IAS Shubham Kumar, who topped UPSC CSE 2020 with 1,054 marks, and IAS Tina Dabi, who topped UPSC CSE 2015 with 1,063 marks.
In contrast, IAS officer Anudeep Durishetty, who topped UPSC CSE 2017, holds the record for the highest marks by a topper in the last decade, with a total of 1,126 marks.
While In the interview round, Shakti Dubey stands alongside last year’s topper, Aditya Srivastava from Lucknow, with both securing 200 marks – the highest interview score achieved by a topper in the last 10 years. They are followed by IAS Tina Dabi, who had scored 195 marks in her interview.
200 MARKS
In the interview round, out of the 1,009 successful candidates, 69 achieved scores of 200 or more.
Aarushi is Topper in Interview: Among the top candidates, three achieved the highest interview scores: 216, 215, and 212. Aarushi Sharma, ranked 184th, from the General category, topped the interview section with 216 marks. She was closely followed by Meghna Chakravorty, ranked 79th, with 215 marks, and Nihal Randhawa, ranked 108th, who scored 212 marks – both from the General category as well. The interview scores for other top candidates varied between 162 and 210, highlighting the importance of this phase in securing a higher final rank.
LOWEST RANK
The candidate with the lowest rank in the SC category, Satish Kumar Tegta, scored 864 marks. He is also a PwBD-5 candidate. In the ST category, the last-ranked candidate, Jerry Lalhratthang Buongpui, achieved 732 marks and is a PwBD-3 candidate. In the OBC category, the candidate with the lowest rank, Sohan Lal, obtained 657 marks and is also a PwBD-5 candidate.
It is important to note that the main examination consists of a written paper worth 1,750 marks, while the interview carries a weightage of 275 marks. The overall merit is determined by combining the marks obtained in both the written examination and the interview.
Last 10 Years Topper’s Marks–
| Year | Topper | Mains Marks | Interview Marks | Total Marks | Percentage |
|---|
| 2024 | Shakti Dubey | 843 | 200 | 1043 | 51.47% |
| 2023 | Aditya Srivastava | 899 | 200 | 1099 | 54.27% |
| 2022 | Ishita Kishore | 901 | 193 | 1094 | 54.02% |
| 2021 | Shruti Sharma | 932 | 173 | 1105 | 54.56% |
| 2020 | Shubham Kumar | 878 | 176 | 1054 | 52.04% |
| 2019 | Pradeep Singh | 914 | 158 | 1072 | 52.93% |
| 2018 | Kanishak Kataria | 942 | 179 | 1121 | 55.35% |
| 2017 | Anudeep Durishetty | 950 | 176 | 1126 | 55.65% |
| 2016 | Nandini K.R. | 927 | 193 | 1120 | 55.38% |
| 2015 | Tina Dabi | 868 | 175 | 1063 | 52.49% |
| 2014 | Ira Singhal | 920 | 162 | 1082 | 53.43% |
THE CUT OFFs
Last year, the cutoffs for the UPSC Preliminary Examination reached unusually low levels, the lowest in nearly 12 years. However, this year, the cutoffs have risen, surpassing those of previous years.
Category-wise Cutoff Details for UPSC CSE-2024:
| Category | Prelims | Mains | Final |
| General | 87.98 | 729 | 947 |
| EWS | 85.92 | 696 | 923 |
| OBC | 87.28 | 702 | 923 |
| SC | 79.03 | 685 | 890 |
| ST | 74.23 | 684 | 891 |
Prelims: In the CSE 2024 prelims, the general category cutoff is 87.98 – higher than 75.41 in 2023, but lower than 88.22 in 2022, 92.51 in 2020, and 98 in 2019. It is, however, slightly higher than the 2021 cutoff of 87.54. Over the last five years, the highest general category cutoff was in 2019. In the last 5 years, the highest general category cut-off was in 2019.
The cutoff for the OBC category is significantly higher than that for the EWS category, similar to last year.
The UPSC CSE 2023 Prelims Cut-Off Marks are based solely on GS Paper-I. Paper-II (CSAT) is of a qualifying nature, requiring a minimum of 33% marks as per Rule-15 of the Civil Services Examination, 2023.
Mains: For the UPSC Mains exam, the general category cut-off is 729 lower than last years’s 741 in 2023, 748 in 2022 and 745 in 2021. While in 2020, it was 736 and 751 in 2019.
UPSC Mains consists of nine papers, out of which seven papers are considered for merit ranking. The remaining two papers, namely the English Language Paper and the Indian Language Paper, are of qualifying nature. Candidates must secure a minimum qualifying marks in these language papers as prescribed by the UPSC.
Final: Same as last year, the final selection cutoff for the ST category in CSE 2024 was again higher than that for the SC category. The cutoff marks are as follows: General – 947, EWS – 923, OBC – 923, SC – 890, and ST – 891.
TOP 25 CANDIDATES
The results of UPSC CSE 2024 reveal that the top 25 candidates comprise 11 women and 14 men. Their educational backgrounds span various fields, including Engineering, Humanities, Science, Commerce, Medical Science, and Architecture, with degrees from prestigious institutions such as IIT, NIT, VIT, JNU, the University of Delhi, and the University of Allahabad.
The top 25 successful candidates have chosen a diverse range of optional subjects in the Written (Main) Examination, including Anthropology, Commerce & Accountancy, Geography, Mathematics, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science & International Relations, Public Administration, Sociology, and Tamil Literature.
45 Candidates Selected from Divyang Category
This year, a total of 45 candidates have been selected under the Divyang (PwBD) category. Among them, 12 candidates fall under PwBD-1 (Visually Impaired), 8 candidates under PwBD-2 (Hearing Impaired), 16 candidates under PwBD-3 (Movement Impairment), and 9 candidates under PwBD-5 (Other Disabilities).
This achievement is not only a remarkable success but also a positive step forward in promoting diversity and inclusiveness. Best wishes to all the selected candidates for a bright and successful future!
