State is the largest employer in J&K. Recruitment to vacancies or posts in Government Departments is done according to a recognized system. Two recruitment agencies, namely State Public Service Commission and State Service Selection Board are entrusted with the responsibility of filling the vacancies and posts whenever referred to them by the departments and organizations. The Public Service Commission deals with recruitment to gazetted cadres while the Service Selection Board deals with non-gazetted cadres. Naturally, there is slight variation in recruitment rules of each agency.
There are two components of recruiting system, written and verbal tests. These are besides the requisite qualifications, producing of state subject certificate and other pertinent documents which the candidates have to submit at the time of filling in and submitting application forms for recruitment. In the case of recruitment to subordinate services, the rules hitherto required only oral and no written test. Experience has shown that recruitment through oral test alone had given rise to injustice and corruption. The authorities given the powers of recruiting candidates on the basis of oral test could be easily corrupted. Great injustice was done to the deserving candidates by eliminating them in oral test. This was the reason why the Prime Minister decided for written test also in the case of candidates applying for subordinate vacancies.
Initially the State Government showed reluctance in implementing the decision of the Prime Minister for its own reasons. However, after the DoP&T stressed upon the background that necessitated scraping of the element of oral test, the Government has agreed to change the Service Rules in regard to recruitments in subordinate categories in the State. In a far-reaching decision aimed at ensuring utmost transparency in the recruitments, the State Government has made it mandatory for the Services Selection Board to conduct written test for all the non-gazetted posts to be referred to it by various departments. With this decision, more than 30,000 posts of different categories will be filled through new initiative. This is a major deviation from age-old practice that has been breeding corruption and favouritism. Actually, these two aberrations — corruption and favouritism-have been the worst irritants to the youth of the State.
We very much appreciate Coalition Government’s re-consideration of recruitment policy in regard to subordinate categories. Now these vacancies will be filled through regular written test followed by oral test. The Government has further clarified how the marks obtained in written test are to be made the criterion for selection. SRO No.438 issued by the General Administration Department
says that the selection agency shall conduct a written test for all advertized posts and the marks/points obtained by the participating candidates shall be apportioned proportionately against the marks earmarked for written test in the selection criteria. On the basis of merit obtained by the candidates in the written examination, the selection agency shall conduct an oral test which may be restricted to five times the number of vacancies advertized.
This is a major departure from the stereotype and promises great transparency in giving the candidates what is their due. Justice has to be done and this is a right step in that direction. If 30,000 vacancies are filled justly on the basis of genuine performance of the candidates, it should go a long way in dispelling the doubts and apprehensions of the candidates about corrupt practice resorted to in recruitment of candidates. Coalition Government deserves appreciation for bringing about radical change in the recruitment system.
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