Punjab to fill nearly 19,000 vacancies in government departments

The Punjab cabinet on Monday decided to fill around 19,000 vacancies in various departments. The vacancies to be filled on a priority basis include around 5,000 in the police department and 5,300 in the electricity department.

Around 2,500 teachers and 5,000 paramedic and specialised employees, including doctors and specialists, would be recruited besides filling 1,300 posts in the revenue department, said an official release.

Chief minister Amarinder Singh asked other departments to submit their list of vacancies without delay so that the recruitment process could be initiated.

The move would generate additional employment in the state, which had witnessed the creation of significant job opportunities through a series of job ‘melas’ (fairs) and other initiatives in the past two years, said the release.

The CM’s diectives came even as the council of ministers decided to ease the recruitment rules for civil services personnel in state through amendments in applicable legislations. The cabinet also authorised the chief minister to approve the final draft of the rules.

As per the conduct of Punjab Civil Services Combined Competitive Examination-2018, the Punjab Public Service Commission had forwarded the merit lists of candidates to the government for allocation of services to 72 posts.

These included Punjab Civil Services (executive branch), deputy superintendent of police, excise & taxation officers, tehsildar, food supply officer, block development & panchayats officer, labour-cum-conciliation officer and employment generation & training officer.

Of these, 17 reserved posts remained unfilled due to non-availability of candidates, following which PPSC urged the government to get them posts filled after taking appropriate decision.

The government was informed that similar situations had also occurred in the past since the rules/instructions governing such situations were not clear.

Age limit raised for SC commission head

The cabinet gave its nod to raise the age limit for chairperson of Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes from 70 to 72 years.

At present, the term of the chairperson’s office is for six years or till he/she attains the age of 70, whichever is earlier. This decision will help in getting more experienced persons for the post.

First Published: Sep 17, 2019 01:25 IST