Maharashtra readies bumper recruitment drive, revamps promotion exam system

Big news has emerged from Maharashtra for candidates awaiting government jobs. The state has begun reviewing vacant posts across various departments to carry out large scale recruitment. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has indicated that this time more posts than ever before will be filled.

Alongside this, the process for the limited departmental competitive examinations held for promotion of government employees is also set to change. A separate portal is being considered to make these exams more consistent and transparent.

The government is also planning a separate system for recruitment in municipal corporations, municipal councils, zilla parishads, panchayat samitis and gram panchayats. This means the development is set to matter greatly both for candidates preparing for government jobs and for employees seeking departmental promotion.

A limited departmental competitive examination is held in various state departments for promotion, clearing which gives employees a chance to reach a senior post. Because of this, thousands of employees remain engaged in preparing for this exam. However, it has been observed that this exam is not held regularly on schedule in every department, and there is often no clear information on exactly how many posts will be filled through it. As a result, many eligible employees face difficulty getting an opportunity. According to sources, a new system will be brought in to make this entire process clear, for which a separate portal will be built giving information on how many posts will be filled through promotion in each department and within what time frame.

To study the separate mechanism working in Gujarat for better coordination between state departments and the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC), Additional Chief Secretary of the General Administration Department V. Radha will go to Gandhinagar on Wednesday. The visit will assess whether a similarly consistent and transparent system can be set up in Maharashtra along the lines of the Gujarat pattern. Meanwhile, a high level task force headed by V. Radha, set up to make government recruitment exams more transparent, is also studying the issue, and the committee will give the government recommendations on improving the examination process.

A large number of posts are lying vacant across various departments of the state government, and the General Administration Department has sought details of these from all departments. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday that a record number of recruitments would be made in the state. He said that after collecting information on vacant posts from all departments, large scale recruitment would be carried out. Five departments are giving presentations on vacant posts at every cabinet meeting, and the government intends to run a large scale recruitment process together once all the information has been gathered. Making it mandatory to upload the necessary recruitment information on the portal is an attempt to bring transparency to the process. The Chief Minister had also recently indicated that more posts than ever before would be made available through the MPSC.

The government is also considering setting up a separate system for recruitment in municipal corporations, municipal councils, zilla parishads, panchayat samitis and gram panchayats. Municipal corporations and municipal councils come under the Urban Development Department, while zilla parishads, panchayat samitis and gram panchayats come under the Rural Development Department. It has been observed that the recruitment methods currently used in these bodies differ from institution to institution, and there is no uniformity in recruitment rules and procedures either. In Gujarat and some other states, a separate system works for recruitment to local self government bodies, so the General Administration Department will also study this arrangement. After departments raise demand for vacant posts, a joint recruitment process is run through the MPSC, and serious consideration is being given to whether a similar joint system can be applied for recruitment to local self government bodies as well.

The General Administration Department had sought information on how many posts are vacant across various state departments, and how many of these need to be filled urgently, about seven months ago, but many departments have not responded as expected. This has held up the recruitment process, including determining the number of vacant posts and the need for them. It is also being said that some officials and ministers are pushing more for taking on contract manpower through outside agencies instead of regular recruitment. A ratio is fixed for how many posts are to be filled through regular recruitment and how many through promotion, but it has also come to light that this ratio is often not followed.

Efforts at reform are under way at several levels, from the examination system to the registry of vacant posts, to make the government recruitment process more transparent and timely. To make recruitment exams secure, transparent and reliable, the high level task force is also hearing suggestions and complaints from candidates. As a result, some important changes are likely in the state's government job recruitment process in the coming period. While large scale efforts are under way to fill vacant posts on one hand, an exercise to bring consistency to departmental promotion exams is also continuing on the other. This is why both candidates preparing for government jobs and employees currently in service are keeping a close watch on these changes.