Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 1 October 2026 highlighted a sharp rise in women's participation in India's civil services examinations, noting that the figure had climbed from just 3 per cent in 1952 to approximately 30 per cent today. Speaking at the centenary celebrations of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) in New Delhi, Modi framed the shift as evidence of expanding opportunity rather than a mere statistical milestone.

Key Remarks by the Prime Minister

Addressing the gathering, Modi pointed to a particularly striking data point in UPSC's institutional history. 'In the entire history of the UPSC, there have been four women chairpersons, of whom three were appointed after 2014,' he said. The four women who have led the commission are Rose Millian Bathew — the first woman to head the body — Rajni Razdan, Preeti Sudan, and Alka Sirohi.

'This change is not only about numbers; it shows that the opportunities have increased,' Modi added, underscoring that the data reflected a structural shift in access rather than just policy intent.

A Growing Pool of Civil Services Aspirants

Modi also drew attention to the expanding base of candidates sitting the civil services examination, describing it as a source of national pride. Referencing UPSC's golden jubilee in 1976, he noted that the share of students appearing for the examination had risen by 45 per cent since that milestone. 'This means that there is a big pool of talent, and it is a proud thing for the country,' he said.

He tied this growth to a heightened responsibility for the selection body. 'When there is a bigger pool of talent, and you select one candidate, you are selecting someone who will become a representative of the government. At the ground level, people will consider them as the government,' Modi said.

UPSC's 100-Year Journey

The event marked the culmination of year-long centenary celebrations that began on 1 October 2025, commemorating a century since the commission's establishment in 1926. Modi described UPSC's evolution as a story of institutional credibility: 'UPSC, in its 100 years, has strengthened its reliability.'

On the occasion, the Prime Minister released a commemorative coin, a commemorative stamp, and a book titled '100 Landmark Judgements: Shaping the Policies of UPSC and Public Service Commissions in India'.

Why It Matters

The UPSC centenary arrives at a moment when civil services reform — covering recruitment timelines, transparency, and diversity — remains a live policy debate. The gender participation figures cited by Modi underscore a generational shift: a cohort that was largely absent from the services at Independence now constitutes nearly a third of all candidates. Notably, the appointment of three of UPSC's four ever women chairpersons within a single decade points to a concentration of representational change in recent years, a detail that analysts say deserves closer scrutiny beyond the headline numbers.