Resentment is brewing among Jammuites over continuous ‘unfair’ selections by the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (PSC) for various posts in Government departments with final list of Assistant Professors in Economics in the Higher Education Department being the latest testimony.
The selection list of Assistant Professors in Economics in the Higher Education Department has many glaring instances which, as per the independent observers, justify the growing disenchantment among the people of Jammu region against the Public Service Commission.
In the year 2014, the Higher Education Department referred 50 posts (27 of Open Merit, 12 of RBA, 4 of Scheduled Caste, 5 of Scheduled Tribe and 2 of ALC categories) of Assistant Professors in the discipline of Economics to the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission for being filled up from amongst the suitable candidates.
The Public Service Commission notified these posts vide Notification No.12-PSC (DR-P) of 2014 dated May 29, 2014 and 256 candidates applied in response to this notification. Out of these 256 candidates, 161 were shortlisted and called for interview in pursuance of the rules.
The interview of the eligible candidates was held from December 20, 2016 to December 22, 2016 at Jammu with the assistance of experts from outside the State. Finally, vide Notification No.27-PSC (DR-S) of 2017 dated May 9, 2017 the Public Service Commission issued select list for the posts of Assistant Professors (Economics) in the Higher Education Department.
Thereafter, vide Letter No. PSC/DR/Asstt Prof/ Economics/ 13-14 dated May 19, 2017 Public Service Commission forwarded the list to Higher Education Department, which vide order No.302-HE dated May 31, 2017 accorded sanction for appointment of candidates as Assistant Professors (Economics).
However, this selection list has come under sharp criticism for being discriminatory towards candidates from Jammu region.
The perusal of the selection list reveals that there are only three candidates from Jammu region against 21 from the Kashmir valley in the Open Category and there are allegations that experts from outside the State, who were called for interview, played ‘mischief’ in connivance with some of the officials posted in the Commission while giving marks to deprive Jammu candidates of selection.
How can such a huge difference in the number of selected candidates be justified especially when the number of candidates appearing in the interview from Jammu region was not much less than those from Kashmir valley?, asked independent observers.
Though the number of candidates from Jammu region belonging to different other categories like SC, ST, RBA and ALC is comparatively better yet the same cannot be treated as indication of fair selection. “There is no Scheduled Caste population in Kashmir valley as such all those candidates who had applied for the posts reserved for this category were from Jammu region only”, observers said.
As far as 12 posts of RBA category are concerned, six candidates each from Kashmir and Jammu regions have made it to the selection list and there was no ground available for disparity in this category because number of RBA candidates from Jammu was high.
“Resentment is brewing among people over continuous bias against candidates from Jammu region by the Public Service Commission and they are of the opinion that unless entire administrative set-up of the Commission is overhauled immediately by replacing officers, consultants and engaging new experts things are not going to change”, observers said.
It is pertinent to mention here that local media had on April 23, 2017 exclusively carried a news-item mentioning that transparency and fairness was at stake in the Commission due to nexus of certain officers.
Though the Government has changed one of the key officers of the Public Service Commission yet the situation demands complete overhaul by changing maximum number of officials, consultants and experts, observers stressed.
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