Where is our naukri?

█ Year after GPSC, SRP and LRD candidates clear exam, give up other jobs, reject employment offers, they have just one question for Gujarat government

Tired of waiting for recruitment letters to posts as lecturers/asst profs, LRD and SRP, successful candidates hit the streets demanding justice

Kiran Bhatia (name changed) was on cloud nine when he cleared GPSC exam for lecturers and assistant professors in 2018. After completing the document verification and interviews in August 2019, he quit his job at an MNC in Greater Noida hoping to get an offer letter for a position as an assistant professor. His wait continues.

Bhatia and others who had nurtured the dream of getting a government job were forced to hit the streets demanding justice. A total of nine GPSC candidates, one SRP and two LRD candidates who had completed all rounds of recruitment process but had not got a job yet, went on fast unto death at the DTE office in Gandhinagar. Wednesday was the fifth day of their protest. The protesting candidates were detained on Wednesday evening.

“Back then, we were informed that we would get an offer letter in 15 days. So, I quit my job. I have been home for the last 13 months hoping to get the appointment letter. I fear my dream may be shattered,” said Bhatia.



In 2015-16, the State government had issued a notice for recruitment to the post of lecturers and assistant professors in five branches—electrical, mechanical, EC, production and fabrication engineering—which cumulatively had 278 vacancies. As if the delay in sending the job offer letters was not enough, the education department reduced the number of vacancies.


As per the circular, vacancies for the post of lecturer in mechanical engineering were reduced from 111to 28 seats while for electrical engineering, they were cut down from 85 to 35. “What was the need to rationalise manpower when they had already conducted the interview round? The government is working to save those who are working on ad-hoc basis. As I passed the GPSC interview, I did not continue on my job as a teacher in a private college in 2019. I am still waiting to get a job,” said Ripal Patel. She was to join college after her maternity leave in August 2019. But the college did not allow her to begin work.

When Divyaraj Zala graduated from NIT, Karnataka, he had an offer of a job in Japan with Rs 29 lakh per annum package, besides offers from several educational institutes for higher studies. “I wanted to do a government job and hence declined these offers,” said Zala. “But even after a year, I am yet to get a job as lecturer in a polytechnic even though recruitment process for computer engineering and IT engineering have been completed,” he added.


When contacted, Commissioner of Technical Education G T Pandya said that the matter is still in court. “The process of recruitment is still underway,” he added.

'Increase seats for LRD male candidates’ Male LRD candidates have been protesting for increase in seats for male candidates, after the government raised reserved seats for women. Sagar Bagul, one of the LRD candidates who had passed the written and physical exam in 2019 and is among those on fast, said, “Originally, the government had 9,713 posts for recruitment. After women candidates from reserved and non-reserved categories staged protests, it increased 2,485 seats for them. This is in violation of reservation provision in the Constitution which permits 33% for women. Now there is 46% reservation for women, while males have only 54%. We demand that the government increase LRD male candidates' seats to ensure that the 33% women reservation is maintained.”