UPSC Finals 2024: UP Hogs Merit List With 3 In Top 10

While Bihar, which was once one of the leading states in the merit list, has slipped up, with only 13 candidates from the state finding a place among the toppers, its place has been taken up by Uttar Pradesh, followed, surprisingly, by Gujarat, leaving behind states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, and Karnataka that have done well over the past many years.

Three candidates, including the topper, are from UP, while two from Gujarat — Harshita Goyal and Shah Margi Chirag — have grabbed the second and fourth positions. 

Gujarat is the real oddball in the mix, indicating a seismic change in the mindset of the youth of the state, who are increasingly aspiring for government jobs. From UP, three candidates — Shakti Dubey, Komal Punia and Mayank Tripathi — secured first, sixth, and 10th positions, respectively, in the All India Ranking (AIR).

The rest of the five spots in the top 10 were bagged by one each from Maharashtra, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Haryana. Dongre Archit Parag from Maharashtra came third, while Delhi’s Akash Garg came fifth, Aayushi Bansal of Madhya Pradesh seventh, Bihar’s Raj Krishna Jha eighth, and Aditya Vikram Agarwal from Haryana ninth.

However, in the overall results, covering 1,009 candidates for services including the IAS, IFS, IPS and other Group ‘A’ and Group ‘B’ services, UP topped the charts with over 90 candidates, followed by Tamil Nadu with 57, Kerala with 54, Maharashtra with 50, Gujarat (26), Karnataka (20), and Bihar (13).

That the country's most populous state, UP, is among the top is understandable, given that it has the greatest cadre strength for All India Services and also sees a larger number of candidates appearing in the exams than other states.

Tamil Nadu candidates have also done exceptionally well this year, bettering last year's tally of 45. The result is more striking because 50 of the 57 who qualified availed of the state government’s scholarship under the Naan Mudhalvan scheme, including 18 who availed of the scheme’s free residential facility. This includes state topper B Sivachandran (AIR 23).

Kerala’s case is different, as the number of candidates recommended by the UPSC has been on the higher side, but only one could find a place in the top 10, with six among the top 100. As always, women aspirants from the state did well.  

Out of the 50 successful candidates from Maharashtra, besides Dongre, Riya Saini also secured a top 100 rank, coming 22nd nationally and second in the state.

Notably, Gujarat came out with bright colours, bringing a wave of cheer across the state and widespread media coverage. A record-breaking 26 candidates made it to the merit list — the best to date. The best part — both top 10 rankers from the state are women — the first time this has happened since Independence.

Although 20 candidates from Karnataka made it to the merit list this year, none could secure a rank in the top 20. The state topper, R Ranga Manju, secured AIR 24.