JKPSC KAS Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

Stage 1: Preliminary

Both are objective, with four alternatives per question, set in English, and questions on Jammu and Kashmir may be asked in Paper-I. Both must be sat: a candidate who misses either is disqualified. The Preliminary is a screen only, and its marks are not counted in the final merit.

Negative marking is one third (0.33) of the marks for the question. More than one answer counts as wrong; a blank carries no penalty. That is steeper than the one quarter most national examinations use.

Blind candidates, and candidates with locomotor disability or cerebral palsy affecting the dominant writing extremity at a minimum of 40 per cent impairment, get twenty minutes per hour extra in each paper.

Stage 2: Main written, eight conventional papers

The English paper works like this: every candidate's Essay, General Studies and Optional papers are evaluated alongside it, but only the papers of candidates who obtain 25 per cent in English are taken cognizance of. That is 75 of 300 at Matriculation standard, and below it seven marked papers are set aside.

The optional subject, 500 of the 1750 counted marks

Stage 3: Personality Test, 250 marks

Not more than thrice the vacancies are called. There is no minimum qualifying mark, but failure to appear makes a candidate ineligible for recommendation whatever the written marks.

Appendix-II of SRO-103 carries the complete syllabus for both stages and all 26 optional subjects. The Government, in consultation with the Commission, may revise it from time to time.

Preliminary Paper-I, 200 marks

• Current events of national and international importance
• History of India and the Indian National Movement
• Indian and World Geography: physical, social and economic
• Indian Polity and Governance: Constitution, political system, Panchayati Raj, public policy, rights issues
• Economic and Social Development: sustainable development, poverty, inclusion, demographics, social sector initiatives
• Environmental ecology, bio-diversity and climate change, not requiring subject specialisation
• General Science

Questions on the state of Jammu and Kashmir may also be asked in this paper. The rules do not say how many.

Preliminary Paper-II, 200 marks, qualifying at 33 per cent

Comprehension; interpersonal and communication skills; logical reasoning and analytical ability; decision-making and problem-solving; general mental ability; basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude) and data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency), both at Class X level.

The standard of the Main examination

The rules say it assesses depth of understanding rather than merely the range of information and memory. The General Studies papers are set so a well-educated person can answer without specialised study, and test the ability to analyse and take a view on conflicting socio-economic goals. The optional papers are broadly of honours degree level, above a bachelor's and below a master's, except Engineering, Medical Science and Law, which are at bachelor's level.

Qualifying English, 300 marks

Tests the ability to read serious discursive prose and express ideas clearly: comprehension of passages, precis writing, usage and vocabulary, and short essays. Matriculation standard; 75 marks qualify.

Paper-I, Essay, 250 marks

Essays on multiple topics. Credit goes to keeping closely to the subject, orderly arrangement, concise writing, and effective and exact expression.

Paper-II, General Studies-I, 250 marks

• Indian culture: art forms, literature and architecture from ancient to modern times
• Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century: events, personalities, issues
• The Freedom Struggle, its stages and contributors from different parts of the country
• Post-independence consolidation and reorganisation
• World history from the eighteenth century: industrial revolution, world wars, redrawal of boundaries, colonisation and decolonisation, communism, capitalism and socialism
• Indian society and its diversity; women and women's organisations; population, poverty and development; urbanisation
• Globalisation and Indian society; social empowerment, communalism, regionalism, secularism
• World physical geography; distribution of natural resources including South Asia; location of primary, secondary and tertiary industry
• Earthquakes, tsunami, volcanic activity and cyclones; changes in critical geographical features including water bodies and ice-caps, and in flora and fauna

Papers III to V

Paper-III opens with the Indian Constitution, its historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure, and runs through governance, social justice and international relations. Paper-IV covers technology, economic development, bio-diversity, environment, security and disaster management; Paper-V ethics, integrity and aptitude. The full heads are in Appendix-II.

Papers VI and VII, the optional

One subject from the 26 listed under Exam pattern, in two papers at honours level. All Main papers are conventional essay type, and marks will not be allotted for mere superficial knowledge.

Residence

Rule 8 of SRO-103 requires a permanent resident of the State. Since the 2019 reorganisation that category has been replaced by domicile, and the wording in the notification of the cycle being applied for is the operative one.

Age

21 to 32 years on 1 January of the year in which the notification is issued.

The Government may, for reasons recorded in writing, prescribe a different upper limit for a particular examination, so confirm it in the cycle's notification.

Attempts

An attempt at the Preliminary is an attempt at the examination. Appearing in any one Preliminary paper counts, and so does an appearance later disqualified or cancelled.

Educational qualification

A Bachelor's degree of a recognised Indian University, or a foreign degree declared equivalent, notwithstanding the individual service rules, so a general degree suffices for all three services.

A candidate who has appeared fully in the degree examination by the last date of the Preliminary application, with the result pending, may sit the Preliminary, but must produce proof of passing with the Main examination application or is not admitted to it. A medical graduate whose internship is incomplete is admitted provisionally to the Main and must produce the degree or a completion certificate at the interview.

Physical standards, J&K Police (Gazetted) Service only

Serving employees

A candidate holding a civil post in the State, which includes posts in the High Court of J&K and the State Legislature, applies through the Head of Office with an advance copy direct to the Commission. If the employer withholds permission, the application is rejected; the candidate may still apply as a fresh candidate if otherwise eligible.

Documents, and provisional admission

No certificates of age, qualification, category or civil post go with the Preliminary application. Attested copies go with the Main application, and the age certificate then submitted is final: no later request for its change is entertained. A category must be claimed at the Preliminary stage. Admission to every stage is purely provisional, and candidature is cancelled if verification at any time shows an eligibility condition was not met.

A candidate must be in good mental and bodily health. The Medical Board, arranged by the Commission before the select list goes to Government, applies Appendix-III for the Police service and Appendix-IV for the others.

1. Preliminary: two objective papers of 200. Paper-II qualifying at 33 per cent, Paper-I sets the order. Both must be sat.
2. Main written: the 300-mark English paper qualifying at 25 per cent, and seven papers totalling 1750 that rank.
3. Personality Test: 250 marks, no minimum, attendance compulsory.
4. Medical examination, then the select list to Government.

How the field narrows

In a year with many candidates and few posts, twenty five times the vacancies binds; in a thin year, one third of those who sat does.

The Commission may also fix minimum marks in any or all of Papers I to VII at its discretion. A candidate below such a minimum in one or more papers is not called for interview, and those minima are not published in advance.

Merit, allotment and ties

Candidates are allotted to services by inter-se merit and the order of preference given once, in the Main examination application. Ties are broken by, in turn: Personality Test marks; the aggregate of the compulsory papers; the General Studies papers; and finally descending date of birth, which favours the older candidate. Most commissions prefer the written total first; this one prefers the interview.

A reserved-category candidate who does not reach the Commission's standard may be declared suitable by reduced standards against reserved vacancies. Physically challenged candidates are considered for posts identified for their category under the J&K Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Rules, 2003, and the minimum marks may be relaxed for them.

Medical, misconduct and appointment

The Medical Board examines candidates before the select list goes to Government, under Appendix-III for the Police service and Appendix-IV for the others; a Special Medical Board may be constituted for physically challenged candidates, and the candidate pays the Board's fee.

The rules list thirteen forms of misconduct, from impersonation and fabricated documents to possessing any mobile phone, pager or other device capable of communication in the hall. A candidate found guilty may be disqualified, debarred permanently or for a period by the Commission and from State Government employment, prosecuted, and if in service, disciplined, after a chance to make a written representation.

Success in the examination confers no right to appointment unless the Government is satisfied after such enquiry as it considers necessary.

SRO-103 fixes no pay, and the Commission publishes no salary figure for this examination. The pay of the Junior Scale of the J&K Administrative Service, the J&K Police (Gazetted) Service and the J&K Accounts (Gazetted) Service is set by the Government of the Union Territory under each service's own recruitment and pay rules; allotment is made in accordance with the rules in force for the respective services at the time.

Which service you get turns on merit and the preference order you give once, in the Main examination application. The only costs the rules mention are the examination fee in the Commission's notice for each stage and a fee paid to the Medical Board. Notifications are on jkpsc.nic.in.

There are two applications, at two stages, on the Commission's own site jkpsc.nic.in, which runs a candidate account for registration, applications and admit cards.

• Proof of age is fixed once. The certificate submitted with the Main application is final.
• Serving employees apply through the Head of Office with an advance copy to the Commission; an intimation withholding permission gets the application rejected.
• A category must be claimed at the Preliminary stage, and a claim not borne out on verification cancels the candidature.
• An incomplete form is rejected summarily, with no provision to cure it after the last date.
• The Commission's decision on eligibility is final, and admission at every stage is provisional.

The Commission's offices and contact numbers are under Important links.

The Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission conducts the examination, prepares the list and arranges the medical board; the Government makes the appointment. Its offices are at Resham Ghar Colony, Bakshi Nagar, Jammu 180001, with a second office in Srinagar, and everything is published on jkpsc.nic.in.

What SRO-103 contains

SRO-103, notified by the General Administration Department (Services), Civil Secretariat, Jammu, on 23 February 2018, runs to 126 pages and holds the whole examination: the three services; eligibility, age, attempts and physical standards; the plan of examination and marks at Appendix-I; the syllabus for both stages and all 26 optionals at Appendix-II; medical standards at Appendix-III for the Police service and Appendix-IV for the others; and the misconduct rule. The Commission publishes other syllabi the same way, for instance S.O. 41 of 2021 for the Prosecuting Officer examination.

Reservation categories particular to the region

The rules require strict adherence to reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, RBA, Social Castes and ALC.

Those three get an upper age limit of 34 years and nine attempts rather than six. Physically challenged candidates are considered under the J&K Persons with Disabilities Rules, 2003, with eligibility as in the 1998 Act read with Government Order No. 147-SW of 2014 dated 17.06.2014, or later orders as applicable.

The separate, lower physical standard for Police service candidates from Leh and Kargil (see Eligibility) is a feature of these rules not found in other states' civil services rules.

The rules name no centres. The dates and places of the Preliminary and Main Examination are fixed by the Commission and given on the admission certificate, which is downloaded from the candidate's account on jkpsc.nic.in. No candidate is admitted without it, and breaking the instructions issued with it is itself misconduct.

Possession of any mobile phone, pager or device capable of communication in the hall is an offence, used or not. So are unfair means, obscene matter in scripts, tearing scripts or provoking a boycott, and harassing the Commission's staff. The penalty can include permanent debarment from the Commission's examinations and from State Government employment.

The medical examination takes place separately, before a Medical Board arranged by the Commission, before the select list goes to Government.

The rules fix no calendar; each cycle's dates come from its notification. One date is fixed by rule: age is reckoned on 1 January of the year the notification issues, not the year the examination is held, so a cycle that slips into the next year does not move the age bar. The two years of substantive service for the civil-post relaxation must also be complete by that day.

So two cycles run at once, and a single cycle's Preliminary, Main and Personality Test span more than a year. Each stage is announced on jkpsc.nic.in: notification, Preliminary admission certificate, Preliminary result and call for Main applications, Main admit card and conduct notice, Main result and marks cards, interview call, and deployment for the medical. The calendar the Commission publishes covers departmental examinations only.

The admission certificate is downloaded from the candidate's own account on jkpsc.nic.in, with a separate notice for each stage: for the 2025 Main, the admit card notice came on 16 June 2026 and a conduct notice on 28 June 2026. No candidate is admitted without it, and its instructions are binding.

Carrying a phone or any device capable of communication into the hall is misconduct on possession alone. The admit card for the Personality Test is the one not to ignore: there is no minimum mark there, but failing to appear ends the candidature whatever the written marks.

Results are published on jkpsc.nic.in, and the Commission issues individual marks cards from the candidate's account, as it did for the 2024 examination in June 2026. It deployed 2024 candidates for medical examination in July 2026. The Preliminary marks are not carried forward, and a disqualified or cancelled candidature still counts as an attempt.

The Commission does not publish cut-off marks for this examination. It issues each candidate a marks card on jkpsc.nic.in instead, so any KAS cut-off in circulation is reconstructed from candidates' own cards.

Two thresholds are fixed by rule: 33 per cent (66 of 200) in Preliminary Paper-II, and 25 per cent (75 of 300) in the qualifying English paper. The Preliminary Paper-I mark and any minimum in Main Papers I to VII are set by the Commission at its discretion after the paper. The Personality Test has no minimum at all.

Read SRO-103 first

One document carries the services, eligibility, attempts, plan of examination, the marks of every paper, the syllabus for both stages and all 26 optionals, and the medical standards. Most of what candidates hunt for elsewhere is in it.

Count your attempts before you sit

Six for a general candidate, nine for RBA, Social Castes, ALC and physically challenged general candidates, unlimited for SC and ST. Appearing in any one Preliminary paper uses an attempt, so do not sit a cycle just to see the paper.

Clear the two gates

Preliminary Paper-II, 66 of 200, on comprehension, reasoning, decision-making and Class X numeracy and data interpretation. It must be sat. Then Main English, 75 of 300, at Matriculation standard. Seven marked papers wasted on a school-level English paper is the most avoidable failure in this examination.

Guess with care in the Preliminary

With four options and 0.33 deducted per wrong answer, a pure guess loses marks on average. Eliminate two and it is about break-even; eliminate three and take it. Marking two options counts as wrong.

Prepare Jammu and Kashmir for Paper-I

The rules allow questions on the region in Paper-I and nowhere else is it guaranteed. Prepare its geography, history, economy and current affairs alongside the national syllabus.

Choose the optional carefully: it is 500 marks

Two papers of 250 out of the 1750 that rank you, 29 per cent of the counted written marks. A candidate who reads Dogri, Kashmiri, Urdu or Punjabi seriously should weigh that literature against a crowded social science.

Write the way marks are given

The rules ask for relevant, meaningful and succinct answers, give no marks for mere superficial knowledge, and in the Essay credit effective and exact expression. Concision is named twice; length nowhere. Practise taking a position on a conflict of goals rather than describing both sides.

Practise on the nearest real papers

JKPSC publishes no past papers. Its four General Studies paper titles match the national civil services examination, so that examination's past papers are the closest genuine practice for Papers II to V, with J&K added for Paper-I and two optional papers at honours level on top.

Take the interview seriously

250 of 2000, the first tie-break, and compulsory to attend. Decide your service preference before the Main application, since it is given once; if the Police service is on the list, check the physical standard first.

No previous year papers or sample papers are available for this exam as of now. JKPSC does not publish question papers for the Combined Competitive Examination.

The full syllabus for both stages is in Appendix-II of SRO-103, and notices for each cycle appear on jkpsc.nic.in.

What does JKPSC KAS recruit for?

Three services: the Junior Scale of J&K Administrative Service, the J&K Police (Gazetted) Service and the J&K Accounts (Gazetted) Service, from one merit list, allotted by rank and the preference order given with the Main application.

What is the pattern?

A Preliminary of two objective papers of 200 each, Paper-II qualifying at 33 per cent; a Main of a 300-mark qualifying English paper plus seven papers of 250 that rank, totalling 1750; and a 250-mark Personality Test. Grand total 2000.

Is there negative marking?

In the Preliminary, one third (0.33) of the question's marks per wrong answer. Two answers count as wrong; a blank costs nothing.

Why does the English paper matter if it does not count?

Below 75 of 300, the Commission does not take cognizance of your Essay, General Studies and Optional papers at all.

Is there an optional subject?

Yes, two papers worth 500 marks, from 26 subjects including the literature of Arabic, Dogri, English, Hindi, Kashmiri, Persian, Punjabi, Sanskrit and Urdu.

How many attempts, and what age?

Six attempts for a general candidate, nine for RBA, Social Castes, ALC and physically challenged general candidates, unlimited for SC and ST. Age 21 to 32 on 1 January of the notification year; 34 for SC, ST, RBA, Social Castes, ALC and substantive civil-post holders with two years' service; 35 for physically challenged candidates.

Can I sit the Preliminary before my degree result?

Yes, if you have appeared fully in the degree examination by the Preliminary closing date, but you must produce proof of passing with the Main application.

How many clear the Preliminary?

One third of those who appeared or twenty five times the vacancies, whichever is lower. Up to thrice the vacancies are called to interview.

Is there a minimum mark in the interview?

No, but you must attend, and interview marks break ties first.

Are there physical standards?

Only for the Police service: men 165 cm with 84 cm chest, women 150 cm with 79 cm, 5 cm expansion; from Leh and Kargil, men 160 cm with 79 cm and women 145 cm with 74 cm.

Is the residence rule in SRO-103 still current?

SRO-103 says permanent resident, which became domicile after the 2019 reorganisation. Follow the notification of your cycle on residence; the rest of SRO-103 is in force.