The Centre informed Rajya Sabha that UPSC will release provisional answer keys after the civil services prelims from 2026, following a Supreme Court directive. Candidates can challenge discrepancies via a new portal. Marks will be disclosed only after final results, while moderation ensures fairness across subjects.

New Delhi: The Union Public Service Commission has formulated guidelines to release the provisional answer key on its website after conducting the civil services preliminary examination, the Centre said in the Rajya Sabha.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts the civil services examination annually in three stages – preliminary, main and interview – to select officers for the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and the Indian Police Service (IPS), among others.

In compliance with a Supreme Court judgement, the UPSC has formulated guidelines to release the provisional answer key on its official website after conducting the preliminary examination, Union Minister of State for Personnel, Jitendra Singh, said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

The process, which will be implemented from the 2026 civil services (preliminary) examination onwards, will apply to all structured examinations conducted by the UPSC, Singh said.