Telangana jobs agency needs thorough revamp
One thought there could not be a bigger embarrassment for the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) when it had to cancel a slew of examinations after it came to light earlier this year that several question papers, including for Group 1 preliminaries, had been leaked.
But the cancellation of Group 1 prelims for the second time has come as a shock, raising serious questions of the commission’s competency. The lakhs of job aspirants who had to take the exam twice are understandably upset and confused; having to prepare for the same exam a third time means a loss of time and other career opportunities.
The TSPSC claimed to have set its house in order after the leaks. It rolled out measures to hold last year’s scrapped exams again. It conducted the Group 1 prelims on June 11 for 504 posts against this backdrop. Over 2.33 lakh candidates took the test, about 50,000 less than those who took the exam last October. This speaks volumes for the disillusionment that seems to have set in among job aspirants about the TSPSC. The second cancellation was caused by nothing but laxity.
A single-judge bench of the Telangana High Court scrapped the exam and, upon appeal, a two-judge bench upheld the verdict that there were lapses compromising the exam’s integrity. What are the lapses? The court says the TSPSC changed the number of candidates days after the test—claiming initially that 2,33,248 candidates had appeared, but finding on closer scrutiny that 258 more had taken the test. It did not enforce biometric attendance. The signatures of two invigilators were not found on the rolls.
These lapses raise doubts. Why did it do away with the biometric system in June when it was used last October? Even if one were to accept the TSPSC’s arguments, it means the system is not foolproof and the commission has not learned the lessons of the leak saga.
Reports suggest the TSPSC plans to appeal the ruling at the Supreme Court. So be it, but the repeated inability to conduct tests smoothly has wider implications. It undermines public faith in the government; more so because government jobs is a major issue in the state. It fuels resentment, especially among the rural youth. It is time the TSPSC is revamped to ensure transparency and efficiency.
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