Maharashtra: 50% cut in recruitment for govt jobs

Maharashtra government has directed all its departments to cut recruitments for government jobs by 50%, while clarifying there will be no blanket ban on new hirings.

Maharashtra government has directed all its departments to cut recruitments for government jobs by 50%, while clarifying there will be no blanket ban on new hirings.

The resolution, issued by the finance department, has stated that the creation of the new posts has been stalled. “About 3,000 posts are created every year. The decision bans new creation. There are about 1.20 lakh posts vacant in all the departments, they are allowed to fill only 50% of the vacant posts,” said an official from the finance department.

The restriction has been attributed to fiscal discipline in the wake of the sorry situation of the state’s finances, said sources.

About 61% of the state revenue is spent on salaries, pensions and loans, which results in insufficient spending on developmental work. The state government is also worried about the burden of about Rs10,000 crore on the salary and pension on implementation of the seventh-pay commission that is likely to be implemented in the next two years. The unwarranted spending on agrarian crisis, toll exemptions and crops insurance, too, has crippled the fiscal position of the state exchequer and has forced the government to introduce the restrictions on the recruitments.

“The estimated revenue growth for the current fiscal is 9.64% and the rate of growth in spending on the salary should not exceed it for the long term fiscal stability of the state,” the government resolution issued on Wednesday stated.

Sudhir Mungatiwar, finance minister, said: “There have been misleading reports about the ban on the recruitments in the media in last week. We have restricted the recruitments for the fiscal discipline. Also, we have decided of inter departmental adjustments of employees as some of the departments have excessive employees.”

Employees unions, however, have slammed the government for the decision.

“The decision lacks foresight and due diligence. On the one hand, the government has put enormous burden by introducing Right To Services Act by fixing accountability on the employees and on the other, there is shortage of manpower. It will largely affect the administrative efficiency,” said GD Kulthe, chief consultant, Maharasthra State Gazetted Officers Federation.