U.P. PGT exam postponed again; aspirants, Opposition slam government’s repeated delays

After the Uttar Pradesh Education Services Selection Commission (UPESSC) postponed the U.P. Post Graduate Teachers (PGT) examination, the government and recruitment body faced criticism from aspirants and the Opposition on Tuesday (September 30, 2025) over the continuous postponements. 

Aspirants raised concerns about the apathetic response of the government machinery in conducting the examinations, alleging that authorities are playing with the future of lakhs of unemployed candidates, who are wasting their prime years in the hope of securing government jobs. Students alleged that this is the fifth time the examination, whose notification was released in April 2022, has been postponed, citing unavoidable reasons.

A notice issued by the Commission, dated September 29, reads, “It is informed to everyone concerned that advertisement number 02/2022, Lecturer (PGT) written examination, which was scheduled to be held on October 15 and 16, 2025, has now been deferred due to unavoidable reasons. The revised dates will be announced later by the Board.”

“The advertisement for the paper was released in April 2022. It was initially to be held in 2022 itself. Later, after protests by aspirants over delays, the dates of April 11-12, 2025, were fixed. Subsequently, the Board announced June 18-19 as the new dates. It was then declared that the exam would be held in August. On August 1, the Commission again notified October 15-16 as the scheduled dates. Now, once again, the exam has been deferred. This decision is impacting lakhs of aspirants who are postgraduates, unemployed, and consider this examination a major step towards upward mobility. They face a bleak and uncertain future, wasting their prime years in the hope of a government job,” said Rajat Singh, an aspirant and national executive member of Sanyukt Yuva Morcha.

Another aspirant, Vishal Mishra, called the postponement a betrayal by the system. “Like me, thousands of aspirants were waiting for this examination. I have been living in Prayagraj, preparing for the paper for the last two years. The hard-earned money of my parents is getting wasted, while the dates of the examination are repeatedly deferred. The Commission and the government are betraying the aspirants,” Mr. Mishra said.

The Uttar Pradesh Education Services Selection Commission (UPESSC), established in 2023, is entrusted with the responsibility of selecting teachers in aided non-government colleges, aided minority colleges, aided non-government intermediate colleges, higher secondary schools, schools run and managed by the U.P. Basic Education Board, aided junior high schools and their affiliated primary schools, as well as aided minority junior high schools and their affiliated primary schools.

The Commission’s announcement on the postponement came just days after Chairperson Kriti Pandey submitted her resignation to the Education Department.

The Opposition parties hit out at the State government over the delay, alleging it is playing with the future of unemployed aspirants. “When the Uttar Pradesh Education Services Selection Commission is unable to conduct the examination, then why is it not dissolved? What could be the inevitable reasons that cannot be explained? Transparency ensures honesty and trust in the system. There is something that is hidden,” wrote Akhilesh Yadav, the Samajwadi Party (SP) president. 

Senior Congress leader Anil Yadav said, “These unending delays for years are a criminal act against students who are preparing for examinations. What is the worth of a Selection Commission, if paper is not conducted. Students are forced to spent years in search of a job, investing lakhs in preparation and accommodation, the government is responsible for delay.”