After weeks of student-led protests in Ranchi, the Jharkhand government announced that it would cancel several examinations as it looks into alleged irregularities in their conduct.
The state’s Personnel Department issued a notification earlier this week following a special Cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Hemant Soren on Monday.
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Deep Dive
What were the specific reasons for the cancellation of the recruitment exams in Jharkhand?
How many exams were cancelled in Jharkhand and which positions were affected?
What measures has the Jharkhand government taken in response to the student protests?
An official notification, released on Wednesday morning, says a total of 44 recruitment exams conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) have been cancelled.
Which tests have been cancelled?
The cancelled examinations include recruitment for drug inspectors, assistant professors in government engineering and medical colleges, lecturers in government polytechnics, senior scientific officers, assistant conservators of forests and forest range officers.
{{/usCountry}}The cancelled examinations include recruitment for drug inspectors, assistant professors in government engineering and medical colleges, lecturers in government polytechnics, senior scientific officers, assistant conservators of forests and forest range officers.
{{/usCountry}}Tests for recruitment to other posts, such as civil judges (junior division), assistant public prosecutors, deputy collectors, assistant engineers, and dentists, also stand cancelled.
Various editions of the Jharkhand Combined Civil Services Examination and tests for recruitment to food safety officers, child development project officers, food analysts, deputy director (prosecution), project managers, inspectors of factories and boilers, agriculture officers, geologists and chemists and other administrative and technical posts, are also cancelled.
Alongside the cancellations, the government has announced that it would request the high court to constitute a fast-track court to hear cases related to alleged irregularities
And a committee, headed by senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal, has been constituted to recommend reforms in JPSC and JSSC exams. The committee has been asked to submit its report within two months.
Protests rage on in Jharkhand
While the cancellation of these exams was brought on by a student-led movement in the statement, the cancellation has sparked further unrest.
Several candidates, who cleared these exams and had been appointed in the government have questioned the cancellation and demanded answers from the Hemant Soren-led government.
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The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which led the students' agitation at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium, said it would decide its next course of action soon. Spokesperson Piyush Kumar Singh told reporters, that the group was awaiting clarity on the scope and implementation of the decisions.
All in all, the protestors, be it before or after the cancellations, have now called for a central probe into the matter.
"Tell us our crime. Don't throw us out," Assistant Section Officer Kaushal Kumar told PTI, demanding a CBI probe or an independent investigation into the alleged irregularities instead of cancellation of the JSSC-CGL exam.
(With inputs from agencies)