Even as Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has stressed the need for filling up of posts lying vacant in various departments of the State Government, applicants under Scheduled Tribe (ST) category for the post of Junior Engineers in the Department of Water Resources (DoWR) have sought his intervention for appointment.
Two years ago, the Chief Minister had directed to fill up Junior Engineer posts in DoWR. However, the tribal applicants alleged that the authorities have ignored them.
Earlier, Patnaik green-signalled the move and the Department of Finance (DoF) had approved filling up of 364 Junior Engineer posts lying vacant in DoWR back in 2013.
Accordingly, the Chief Engineer DoWR had written a letter to the Chairman of the panel, which was formed by the Government consisting of Chief Engineers on August 7, 2013 seeking eligible Diploma Engineers for filling up of 314 vacant posts.
Of the total posts, 59 were unreserved, 47 were SEBC, 43 SC and 165 were reserved for the ST candidates. Earlier, both CMO and DoF had approved for filling 15 SC and 126 ST posts lying vacant for past years.
However, the panel sent the names of 257 eligible candidates instead of 314 to the DoWR Chief Engineer. Of the total names sent, only 108 were ST candidates.
The tribal candidates possessing Diploma Engineering qualifications alleged that while the requisition was made for 165 posts that were reserved for ST candidates in the department, only 108 names were sent out of which 47 candidates were appointed and the remaining are still waiting for the jobs for two years.
Meanwhile, an official on condition of anonymity said, “The Chief Minister, the Chief Secretary and the Principal Secretary DoWR want tribal candidates to get jobs in the departments. But few officials of the Department of law are creating unnecessary hurdles for them”.
So they have urged the Chief Minister to intervene in the matter as the State Government’s genuine interest to provide jobs to the educated youth facing road block.