BENGALURU: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday distributed appointment orders to around 1,000 candidates under the state government’s employment guarantee initiative ‘Abhaya Hasta’. The initiative has revived long-pending recruitment processes in the health and family welfare department, with 320 candidates recruited from Kalyana Karnataka and 650 selected for permanent para-medical posts across the state.
Speaking after distributing appointment orders at Ambedkar Bhavan, he said non-medical staff are as vital as doctors and urged healthcare personnel to rise above caste and religious divisions and serve with compassion and humanity.
Stressing on transparency, the chief minister said all recruitments are being conducted through a counselling process to curb corruption. As many as 5,700 transfers, including those of doctors, have been completed through counselling. “Preventing corruption in recruitment and transfers is the firm commitment of our government,” he said, cautioning employees against falling prey to transfer agents.
He noted that after assuming office for a second term, the government has taken steps to fill vacancies in phases. Over 2.5 lakh posts remain vacant across departments and will be filled systematically, he added.
Appointment orders were issued to 970 eligible paramedical candidates -- 320 from Kalyana Karnataka and 650 from other regions along with 77 drug inspectors. The minister said the recruitment matter had reached the Supreme Court and was resolved legally.
The department has also engaged 223 DPharma students as apprentices and plans to recruit 700 more with a monthly stipend of Rs 8,000. Around 220 specialist doctors will be appointed shortly to strengthen super-speciality services in government hospitals.