how many SC/ST/OBC/General/EWS were selected/allocated to IAS each year.
🇮🇳 IAS category-wise selection/allocation, 2000–2025
Yes. I checked the DoPT/UPSC records and historical government material. One important correction to the earlier answer: “selected/recommended in the CSE” and “allocated to IAS” are not always the same number. The table below uses the IAS category-wise vacancies/allocations reported for that CSE cycle, which is the most consistent way to compare 2000–2025. DoPT’s service-allocation system itself distinguishes service allocation from the broader UPSC recommendation list.
| CSE Year | General/UR | EWS | OBC | SC | ST | IAS Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | — | — | — | — | — | Data not reliably available |
| 2001 | — | — | — | — | — | Data not reliably available |
| 2002 | 38 | — | 20 | 12 | 6 | 76 |
| 2003 | 46 | — | 26 | 12 | 5 | 89 |
| 2004 | 39 | — | 34 | 12 | 6 | 91 |
| 2005 | 45 | — | 22 | 14 | 6 | 87 |
| 2006 | — | — | — | — | — | Data not reliably verified |
| 2007 | 56 | — | 28 | 18 | 9 | 111 |
| 2008 | 59 | — | 33 | 17 | 10 | 119 |
| 2009 | — | — | — | — | — | Data not reliably verified |
| 2010 | 76 | — | 41 | 23 | 11 | 151 |
| 2011 | 85 | — | 46 | 26 | 13 | 170 |
| 2012 | 94 | — | 45 | 28 | 13 | 180 |
| 2013 | 90 | — | 49 | 27 | 14 | 180 |
| 2014 | 94 | — | 45 | 28 | 13 | 180 |
| 2015 | — | — | — | — | — | 180 |
| 2016 | — | — | — | — | — | 180 |
| 2017 | 93 | — | 46 | 28 | 13 | 180 |
| 2018 | 91 | — | 48 | 27 | 14 | 180 |
| 2019 | 72 | 18 | 52 | 25 | 13 | 180 |
| 2020 | 72 | 18 | 49 | 28 | 13 | 180 |
| 2021 | 72 | 18 | 49 | 27 | 14 | 180 |
| 2022 | 75 | 18 | 45 | 29 | 13 | 180 |
| 2023 | 73 | 17 | 50 | 27 | 14 | 181 |
| 2024 | 73 | 18 | 52 | 24 | 13 | 180 |
| 2025 | 74 | 18 | 47 | 28 | 13 | 180 |
Important source checks
- 2002: 76 IAS vacancies: 38 General, 20 OBC, 12 SC, 6 ST.
- 2003: 89 IAS: 46 General, 26 OBC, 12 SC, 5 ST. DoPT’s annual report records the reserved vacancies as filled.
- 2004: 91 IAS: 39 General, 34 OBC, 12 SC, 6 ST. UPSC’s annual report gives the same community breakdown for candidates recommended to IAS.
- 2005: The government/UPSC records show 87 IAS vacancies: 45 General, 22 OBC, 14 SC and 6 ST.
- 2007: 111 IAS: 56 General, 28 OBC, 18 SC, 9 ST.
- 2008: DoPT records 119 IAS allocations: 59 General, 33 OBC, 17 SC, 10 ST.
- 2010: 151 IAS: 76 General, 41 OBC, 23 SC, 11 ST.
- 2011: 170 IAS: 85 General, 46 OBC, 26 SC, 13 ST.
- 2012–2014: IAS had 180 posts in each cycle, with the category distributions shown above.
- 2017: 180 IAS posts: 93 General, 46 OBC, 28 SC, 13 ST.
- 2018: 180 IAS posts: 91 General, 48 OBC, 27 SC, 14 ST.
- 2019: EWS appears for the first time in this series: 72 General, 18 EWS, 52 OBC, 25 SC, 13 ST.
- 2021: DoPT’s Annual Report explicitly records 180 IAS allocations: 27 SC, 14 ST, 49 OBC, 18 EWS, 72 UR.
- 2023: DoPT’s 2024–25 Annual Report explicitly records 181 IAS allocations: 27 SC, 14 ST, 50 OBC, 17 EWS, 73 UR.
- 2024: 180 IAS posts: 73 General, 18 EWS, 52 OBC, 24 SC, 13 ST.
- 2025: 180 IAS posts: 74 General, 18 EWS, 47 OBC, 28 SC, 13 ST. The CSE-2025 final result was released on March 6, 2026.
⚠️ Why I left some cells blank
I don’t want to present overall Civil Services Examination category totals as if they were IAS totals. For example, 2009 had 989 candidates recommended across all services, but that is not the number allocated to IAS. The government itself notes that UPSC recommends candidates against overall category vacancies and that service allocation happens separately.
Similarly, for 2006, 2009, 2015 and 2016, I found historical allocation documents but not enough reliable category-wise IAS totals in the accessible government record to state them confidently. For example, the DoPT IAS cadre-allocation document for CSE-2005 identifies individual candidates and their categories, while the broader 2005–07 government material gives category totals for the entire Civil Services, not IAS alone.
