SSC CGL Exam 2025 in September: Single Shift, Nearby Centres, and Aadhaar Must

The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) has announced major changes for the Combined Graduate Level (CGL) examination, which will be held in September 2025.

Speaking to media, SSC Chairman S. Gopalakrishnan said that many candidates had faced problems in earlier exams—like computer failures, faulty equipment, delays in Aadhaar verification, and exam centres being too far away from their homes.

To fix these issues, SSC has decided to hold the CGL exam in one shift across the country, so all candidates get the same paper and there is no confusion about different difficulty levels. From now on, students will also get exam centres within 100 km of their registered address, making travel easier. Currently, 80% of candidates get nearby centres, and SSC aims to raise this number to more than 90%.

For fair evaluation, SSC will use shift-wise normalisation to balance scores if there are differences in paper difficulty. Aadhaar verification has been made mandatory for all applicants to speed up the identification process.

The Commission has also changed the way the exam is managed. Four separate agencies will now handle exam centres, security, applications, and question papers. Importantly, SSC itself will directly supervise question paper preparation to ensure quality and consistency.

When asked if the exam might return to the old pen-and-paper format, Gopalakrishnan ruled it out. He said computer-based testing (CBT) is more secure, transparent, and faster—especially since crores of candidates apply for SSC exams every year.