Govt job crisis: Congress poll promise hits caste hurdle in Telangana

Recruitment to Telangana state civil services has turned into political battleground. Aditi Phadnis tracks issue in a state where employment (govt jobs) was a central point during formation

The number of jobs on offer is just 563 as against more than 400,000 candidates registered with the Telangana Public Service Commission (TPSC). They are to sit for the examination, being held after 13 years, for Group I posts, the top tier in the state civil service. But just as the written main examination was about to begin, a caste dispute in the process of recruitment became so intense that the government had to order a lathi-charge to disperse thousands of protesting students in Hyderabad earlier this month.

  At the heart of the standoff is Government Order (GO) 29, issued by the Congress-led government, and GO 55, issued by the previous government, run by the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

  Employment, especially government, was a central issue in the demand for Telangana.

  “The Telangana agitation was mainly with the slogan ‘Nidhulu-Neellu-Niayamakalu’, which translates into funds, water and jobs,” said Sandeep Vempati, a leading member of the Telangana unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“Two decades ago, I too was an aspirant for a Group I job, and although I was not successful in the examination, it was our belief that someday Telangana would get justice.” 

After bifurcation, Telangana had the chance to start afresh.

  But how was the number of government jobs in a new state to be calculated?

  After extended consultations, the BRS government issued GO 55 in April 2022, allowing 50 times the number of vacancies to be admitted for the written (main) examination while ensuring compliance with reservation rules for various categories, including caste, community, gender, EWS (economically weaker sections), persons with disabilities (PH), and sports. 

The exams were ordered and held. However, they were cancelled in March 2023, following a paper leak.

  They were re-ordered in June 2023 but were cancelled again because biometric standards set for the exam could not be met by the government in time.

  The Group I exams and the BRS government’s “incompetence” were a central issue of the Congress state poll campaign in 2023.

  As part of his Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul Gandhi sat in the middle of Ashok Nagar, which is the Hyderabad hub of aspirants for the state civil service, like a mini Kota, and addressed thousands of young men and women.

  He told them his sympathies were with Telangana’s youths “who are suffering immensely under ‘Dorala’ KCR sarkar”, adding, “our ‘Job Calendar’ is the first step in easing their pain. We will ensure 200,000 government jobs in one year, revamp of the TPSC on the lines of the Union Public Service Commission and a Yuva Vikasam programme to create jobs”. 

When the Congress came to power in 2023, it did release a job calendar.

  However, the government issued a GO 29, amending the GO 55 issued by the previous government. 

While it did not deviate from the 1:50 vacancy to candidate ratio, the second paragraph of the new rule said: “Shortfall in respect of candidates in reserved categories as laid down in rules 22 & 22 A of the Telangana State and Subordinate Service Rules, 1996: action shall be taken to include such number of candidates from the merit list beyond 1:50 ratio, as required to meet the shortfall in the respective categories.” 

This implied if there was a shortfall of candidates from the reserved quota in Group I, the government could fill the vacancies from the open merit list.

  This touched off massive protests with candidates from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes alleging that the Congress government was conspiring to undermine the idea of reservations, and thus violating the Constitution of India.

  A host of candidates have lodged cases in the Telangana High Court and some even approached the Supreme Court. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court declined to stay the exam but asked the Telangana High Court to decide on the matter before November 20.

  The BRS has understandably latched on to the issue and former minister KT Rama Rao has been leading protests against the government.

  Dasoju Sravana Kumar, former legislator, said: “We will stand with the affected youths and unemployed for justice. We demand the postponement of the Group I exam and abolition of illegal GO 29.”

  The Congress says it is doing what it had promised. Retired members of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) concede there are difficulties in meeting the reservation target.

  “Take police recruitment. The government decided that physical standards for policemen must be non-negotiable. Everything, including reservations, must come later. But we faced many challenges. In some cases, those from the reserved category who made it to the list outnumbered those from the unreserved group. In others, there were simply not enough candidates from the reserved quota to fill the vacancies, so those from the Open Category (OC) had to be taken to fill the vacancies…” said a serving IAS officer.

  “The Congress government in Telangana is undermining reservations while Rahul Gandhi goes for support of backward classes,” said Sukumar, a student from Hyderabad, referring to Gandhi’s demand for a backward class census.

  There is an uneasy calm in Telangana as candidates sit for the examination. But once the results are declared, the BRS will likely hit the street.