Tangirala, Maruthi P. creator text xu| 2009 continuing ng p.16-20. Careers in the civil service are a continuing source of prestigious employment to the middle and upper classes of non-metropolitan India, even as a erstwhile elite classes look for greener pastures. Differential access to languages, especially to English, distinguishes the "national" and regional elites in India. This article presents evidence relating to language choice from the civil services exams post-1979. The perceptible changes in preferences of candidates taking this exam reflect a new confidence with using Indian languages led by Hindi and mirror the larger changes in the linguistic landscape and in linguistic relations. - Reproduced. Civil service - India Civil service Economic and Political Weekly 180718