A Senate Standing Committee on Monday debated a proposal to raise the upper age limit for candidates appearing in the Central Superior Services examination.
The committee discussed reforms related to the Federal Public Service Commission, the CSS examination and Pakistan’s civil service recruitment system. Members also floated several proposals aimed at improving the bureaucracy.
The age limit proposal drew clear disagreement among committee members. Officials briefing the committee opposed the idea, saying a higher age limit could reduce the number of productive years civil servants spend in service and may affect administrative efficiency.
The committee chair also referred to international trends, noting that many countries have moved away from the traditional CSS-style recruitment model and adopted more modern systems.
After reviewing earlier recommendations on CSS reforms and recruitment procedures, the committee ended the discussion without reaching a final decision.
Earlier, the FPSC rejected claims of a 45 percent decline in CSS applicants, saying such comparisons were misleading and lacked proper context.
The commission said 64,081 candidates registered for the 2025 MPT, while 18,139 applied for the written exam.
Of them, 12,792 appeared, 354 qualified, 342 succeeded in the interview stage, and 170 were allocated to civil service groups.
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