‘Smart candidates’ make rich haul of selections
JAMMU: The recent selection of candidates to class fourth vacancies in the Education Department in Jammu District is becoming murkier with sensational disclosures surfacing each passing day.
The records pertaining to appointments reveal that 25 out of 90 appointees did not figure in the shortlisted 1,912 candidates at all. Interestingly, most of the 25 candidates performed so well during viva-voce that the committee fell obliged to give them highest marks though academically they had not fared so well. This has raised eyebrows as to how they got selected despite not having made to even the shortlist in the first instance.
The 4-Member District Level Selection Committee, headed by Chief Education Officer, Jammu Tarseem Lal with Principal District Institute of Education and Trainings (DIET), Mohinder Singh, Deputy Director Social Welfare, Kulraj Singh and Deputy Director Employment Priyalaxmi as Members, which is currently under the scanner of State Vigilance Organistaion, had called 1,912 candidates for interview beginning 17th September. In all, about 6,000 candidates had applied for class fourth vacancies in response to advertisement notice No: 2 of 2014 dated 19th August 2014.
The interviews began precisely 28 days after the posts were advertised. However, the Committee issued a subsequent notice vide No: CEOJ/26183-84 dated 18th September 2014, asking the candidates, who had applied but did not figure in the shortlist ‘due to typographical error’ to get their names incorporated with an official detailed on duty for the purpose at Boys Higher Secondary School Bakshi Nagar Jammu before 22nd September 2014, two days ahead of the interviews were scheduled to conclude.
As per the final selection list, issued on 9th October 2014, 14 out of 25 candidates, who got their names incorporated when interviews were already in progress, figured in the open merit list. They got 35.25 to 38.75 marks out of 40 at the disposal of interviewing authority. Academically, they have lesser marks than those who did not make to the selection list, as per sources.
In SC Category, six of the eight selectees are from the list of 25 candidates who got their names included later. They got highest 35.75 to 38.50 marks out of 40.
In ALC (Actual Line of Control) Category, two of the three selected candidates also come from the list of 25 who got 35.75 to 38 marks out of 40. In ST category, one candidate Arif Choudhry is among the nine candidates who came from the list of 25. He got 34.50 marks in the interview while having 28.90 academic points though the topper in the category with 39 academic marks got just 29.50 marks.
Those who got appointed outside the shortlist are: Reena Singh (serial number 5), (number 9), Mansi Duggal (number 10), Puja (number 15), Anita Patwari (number 16), Ankush Sharma (number 18), Mithun Sharma (number 21), Kanchan Devi (number 22), Akhil Sharma (number 26), Harmeet Singh (number 27), Ajay Kumar (number 28), Manish Kumar (number 30), Gurmeet Kour (number 34), Ajay Kumar (number 42).
Similarly, in Physical Handicapped category, Sonia Bharti (number 1) and Sohan Lal (number 3) did not exist in the shortlist candidates. In Scheduled Caste category, the selected candidates Parveen Kumar (number 1), Arti (number 2), Monika Dranch (number 3), Vinod Singh(number 5), Sahil (number 7), Koushal Kumar (number 8) did not figure in the shortlist.
In ALC category, Abhishek Sharma (number 1) and Surinder Kumar (number 2) did not figure in the shortlist.
Chairman of the Committee, Tarseem Lal told STATE TIMES that selections were fair but it appears that the list has got politicised.
SSP Vigilance Rupinder Chalotra said, “We have also received complaints that few selected candidates were not existing in the shortlist of applicants, who were called for interview on 17th September, 2014 at Government Higher Secondary School Bakshi Nagar, Jammu. “The SVO team is scrutinising the entire record related to two select lists of Class IV employees.
The process for recruitment of the Class IV employees in Education Department has been completed in record one and half month’s time. Earlier, such selections used to take four to five years in completing the selection process. Records reveal that within one and half month, the application forms were shortlisted, candidates interviewed and select list of 90 candidates issued. This list followed another list declared on 18th August, 2014.
Interestingly, the application forms for selections made under the list issued on 18th August 2014 were sought in 2010 vide Advertisement Notice No: 1of 13th October, 2010.
During the raid on Saturday, the SVO seized the record of two select lists-one declared on 18th August, 2014 wherein 113 candidates were selected and the other on 10th October, 2014 wherein 90 candidates were selected.
VIVEK SHARMA