UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: When is the reporting time for May 24 exam
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 Exam Live Updates: UPSC had already issued the CSE prelims hall ticket for the exam on their official website at upsc.gov.in. The Commission has also send the e-admit cards via email to those candidates who have not downloaded it yet.
· The Indian Express · JoinUPSC 2026 Prelims LIVE: The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) will be conducting the Civil Services Preliminary Examination (CSE Prelims) on Sunday, May 24, 2026 throughout the country. This year as many as 8,19,372 applicants have registered for UPSC CSE 2026 for around 933 vacancies.
The UPSC CSE preliminary test will be held in two shifts using an offline OMR-based format. The Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) Paper II will take place in the afternoon after General Studies Paper I in the morning. In addition to a current photo ID, candidates must bring a printed copy of their e-admit card to their respective exam centre.
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UPSC had already issued the CSE prelims hall ticket for the exam on their official website at upsc.gov.in. Candidates can visit the link to download their admit card using their registration ID or roll number, if not already done so. The admit card contains crucial information such as students details, exam centre address, reporting time, prohibited items and documents to carry on the day of the exam. Students are advised to go through these details carefully.
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This year UPSC has added three new centres at Kanpur, Meerut and Bhubaneshwar, thus relieving pressure from existing centres that handled candidates in larger numbers. The total number of examination centres for CES Prelims has now increased from 80 to 83. According to the Commisison, nearly 23,000 candidates have opted to take the exam from the newly added centres.
This year for the first time UPSC will announce the exam answer key soon after Prelims. Previously, the answer key used to take months to be published as it was released following the final results. According to the Commission, the new system is meant to boost the examination process’s transparency and permit applicants to evaluate their performance sooner.
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The preliminary exam is the initial step in the hiring process for services like the IAS, IPS, IFS, and other Group A and Group B central services. The result for this exam is usually declared within 30 to 40 days of the examination.
Live Updates
May 23, 2026 04:08 PM IST
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: CSAT 2025 one of the toughest in past years
According to experts, CSAT 2025 was one of the toughest papers set by UPSC in the last few years. Mudit Gupta writes, "CSAT is not a qualifying paper, it is an eliminating paper". Lengthy questions in the Quantitative Aptitude section and UPSC's focus on basics made the exam particularly difficult last year.
May 23, 2026 03:53 PM IST
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: Environment topics to revise
Candidates should revise significant environment topics from the previous year's exam for Prelims 2026, particularly those pertaining to international agreements, protected areas, climate change, oceanography, environmental governance, pollution, and conservation efforts. The exam frequently includes questions about wetlands, Ramsar Convention sites and biodiversity conventions.
May 23, 2026 03:38 PM IST
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: Admit card to be mailed by UPSC
In a post on LinkedIn, UPSC Chairperson Ajay Kumar informed that the Commission has decided to email e-admit cards directly to all those candidates who have not yet downloaded them from the portal. UPSC has specifically advised candidates to check their registered email inbox as well as their spam and junk folders for the e-admit card.
May 23, 2026 03:22 PM IST
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: Checklist for exam day
– Candidates are advised to reach the examination venue well in advance for frisking and identity verification.
– Appearing at any examination venue other than the one mentioned in the admit card will not be permitted.
– The candidature of all candidates is provisional.
– Mobile phones, even in switched-off mode, smart watches, Bluetooth devices, cameras, pagers, pen drives, and other electronic gadgets are strictly prohibited inside the examination hall.
– Candidates are allowed to wear only normal or simple wrist watches. Smart watches or watches with communication features are banned.
– Bags, luggage, valuables, and costly items are not allowed inside the venue. UPSC said the commission will not be responsible for the loss of any belongings.
– Candidates are advised not to bring banned items as there may not be arrangements available at the venue for safekeeping.
– Answers marked using any pen other than a black ballpoint pen will not be evaluated.
– Negative marking will be applicable for wrong answers in both question papers.
– Candidates using their own scribes will be permitted only if they have been issued a separate e-Admit Card for the scribe.
– UPSC has advised candidates to visit and confirm the location of their examination centre at least one day before the exam.
– If a candidate has changed their name after matriculation, they must carry a government-issued photo ID in the changed name. Failure to do so may lead to denial of entry into the examination premises.
May 23, 2026 03:19 PM IST
UPSC CSE 2026 Prelims: Things to carry
– Printed e-Admit Card
– Original photo ID card mentioned in the admit card
– Black ballpoint pen
– Pencil
– Identity proof
– Water in a transparent bottle
– Passport-size photographs, if applicable
Candidates whose photographs on the admit card are unclear must bring a photo ID and two passport-size photographs with an undertaking for each session.
May 23, 2026 03:19 PM IST
UPSC CSE Prelims 2026 LIVE Updates: What is the reporting time for May 24 exam?
Entry to the examination venue will be closed 30 minutes before the start of each session. For the forenoon session, gates will close at 9 am, while for the afternoon session, entry will close at 2 pm.
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