Dhaka, Oct 24 (V7N) – Candidates will now be limited to three attempts at the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) exam, as per a new rule established by the advisory council. This decision was made during a meeting held on Thursday, chaired by Chief Adviser Dr. Muhammad Yunus at the chief adviser's office in Tejgaon.

Additionally, the council approved the draft ordinance titled "Maximum Age Limit for Direct Recruitment to Government Jobs, 2024," which raises the maximum age for entry into government service to 32 years.

Following the meeting, officials from the chief adviser’s office and the Cabinet Division informed reporters of these key decisions. The Ministry of Public Administration will now revise the "BCS (Age, Qualification and Examination for Direct Recruitment) Rules, 2014" to incorporate the new three-attempt limit for the BCS exam.

Under this new ordinance, the maximum age for joining all Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) cadres will now be 32 years, aligning with the same age limit set for all other government jobs. For autonomous and semi-autonomous organizations, this age limit may vary depending on amendments to their specific recruitment rules. However, recruitment guidelines for defense and law enforcement personnel will remain unchanged.

Previously, a government review committee had suggested raising the age limit for men to 35 years and for women to 37 years for entry into government service, though no recommendations were made regarding retirement age.

On September 30, the government formed a committee led by former secretary Abdul Mueed Chowdhury of the Public Administration Reform Commission to examine the possibility of increasing the age limit for employment.

Currently, the general age limit for entering government service stands at 30 years, with an exception for children of freedom fighters, for whom the limit is 32 years. Job seekers have long pushed for the age limit to be increased to 35 years.

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