Saturday, October 5, 2024

Odisha Govt to Introduce Special Legislation in Recruitment Process: Minister – N.F Times


Bhubaneswar: The state government is committed to increasing the transparency and fairness of various recruitment examinations and plans to introduce special legislation in the recruitment process, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Mukesh Mahaling announced in the Odisha Assembly today. He mentioned that the Central Government has recently enacted a special law, which the State Government intends to adopt similarly.

Minister Dr Mahaling discussed the state government’s strategy, highlighting the new administration’s focus on recruitment. The government has pledged to fill 1.5 lakh vacant positions over the next five years. In addition, 65,000 posts are slated to be filled within the next two years. By this coming December, a total of 34,686 vacancies will be filled across the state.

The minister announced in the legislative assembly that, this September, the School and Mass Education Department will see the largest number, with 2,979 positions being filled up.

During the adjournment discussion, the Congress members criticised both the central and state government’s recruitment promises. MLA Ashok Das remarked, “Prior to 2014, the BJP-led central government pledged to create 2 crore jobs. Post-election, they revised this to 1 crore job opportunities. The state government at the time also committed to providing 2 lakh jobs annually. What became of these assurances?  It has been decided to rehabilitate the retired employees. In this case, how will the problem of unemployment be solved? The current administration is merely continuing the previous government’s practices. According to the NCRB report, 3548 people committed suicide due to unemployment in 2020. The national unemployment rate stands at 3.2 percent while the state unemployment rate is 3.9 percent.

Congress MLA Sofia Firdous has stated that the government has not provided any clarity regarding the filling of vacancies. It remains uncertain which positions will be filled. Allegations of corruption have surfaced in the recruitment process for Group C positions with claims that marks were unfairly allocated for money, essentially selling the jobs. The government should investigate these allegations, she demanded.

BJD MLA Ganeshwar Behera has highlighted significant issues such as filling vacant positions, making new appointments, and abolishing fixed-term appointments, voicing his concerns. Likewise, BJD MLAs Ramesh Behera and Sarada Prasanna Jena have urged the government to issue a definitive statement addressing the unemployment issue.

BJP MLA Tankadhar Tripathy has vehemently criticized the previous BJD government. The former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition, Naveen Patnaik, announced plans to make contractual employees permanent on October 16, 2022, but failed to follow through. Mr Tripathy stated that this is indicative of how Patnaik angered the Odisha populace by making such announcements before the elections. He also mentioned that residents of his constituency in Ganjam district have elevated the textile industry in Gujarat, yet received no support from Patnaik during his 24-year tenure. In a similar vein, BJP MLAs Manas Dutt and Bibhuti Bhushan Pradhan have accused the previous BJD government of contributing to the unemployment issue.


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