E-Paper
No recruitment for U.P. agriculture services for three years
The Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) has delayed the Combined State Agriculture Services Recruitment Examination, causing frustration for aspirants. The advertisement will be released once necessary amendments are approved by the state government. A separate advertisement for agriculture services was issued in December 2020, but no further advertisements have been issued since then. The delay has disrupted the recruitment process and caused hardships for aspirants. The last date for submitting online applications for review officer (RO) and assistant review officer (ARO) positions may be extended due to technical issues on the UPPSC website.
Thousands of aspirants in the field of agriculture have been patiently awaiting the Combined State Agriculture Services Recruitment Examination by the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) for the past three years, to no avail.
The UPPSC received requisitions for approximately 175 vacant positions in agriculture services. However, due to the addition of new posts in the recruitment process and pending amendments to the syllabus, which require approval from the state government, the advertisement has been delayed, claim aspirants.
According to UPPSC officials, the advertisement for the combined state agriculture services recruitment examination will be released as soon as the necessary amendments are approved by the state government.
Similarly, amendments to the examination pattern and eligibility equivalence for the UP combined state engineering services have delayed the release of its advertisement. The commission has received requisitions for over 150 vacant positions from various departments.
Previously, UPPSC used to handle recruitment for agriculture services through its combined state/upper subordinate services exam, commonly known as the PCS exam. However, for the first time on December 29, 2020, a separate advertisement for agriculture services was issued by UPPSC in the state. A total of 73,792 candidates applied for 564 posts of seven types, including district horticulture officer (Category-2), principal of government food science training centre/food processing officer (Category-2) and senior technical assistant group-A (crop, vegetable, plant protection, chemical and development branch).
In the results declared on May 24, 2022, candidates were selected for 461 vacant posts, while the remaining posts remained unfilled. However, no advertisement for the UP combined state agriculture services recruitment examination has been issued since then.
Avnish Pandey, president of Pratiyogi Chatra Sangharsh Samiti, a body representing students preparing for competitive exams, expressed that the delay not only disrupts the recruitment process but also causes hardships to aspirants who have been preparing for years. He added, “Any further delay means that the uncertainty faced by thousands of aspirants continues and undermines all their efforts.”
Last date for RO/ARO application may be extended
The last date for submitting online applications for a total of 411 positions, including 334 review officer (RO) posts and 77 assistant review officer (ARO) posts, is November 9. The application process began on October 9 following the notification by UPPSC. However, due to the increasing number of aspirants opting for mandatory OTR (One Time Registration) in recent days, there is a significant load on the UPPSC website, causing intermittent outages. UPPSC officials anticipate that, like other recruitments, the deadline for receiving online applications for RO/ARO may also be extended to accommodate the requests of aspirants.
