The Khasi Students’ Union’s (KSU) employment monitoring cell is livid with the working and recruitment process for staff nurses, which it says is ambiguous, biased and manipulative.
In a letter to the Director of Health Service (MI), the union stated that on May 17 this year it had expressed its discontent over the shortlisted candidates’ names that were published by the DHS (MI) for walk-in-interview for 325 staff nurses.
The KSU stated that it objected to the selected candidate list as there were numerous allegations made by the candidates whose names were not on the list that the list is fraudulent in nature and had been prepared under the undue influence of people in power.
“There are numerous accusations that candidates who have been selected for the interview do not fulfil the required parameters set by the office and candidates who were left out fulfil all the parameters set by the office,” the KSU stated in its letter.
The pressure group also said that it had put forward a demand to publish the marks of all the candidates who have applied in order to have transparency over the list of selected candidates for the interview and to avoid any claims of nepotism.
Subsequently, the walk-in-interview was cancelled on May 20 but four days later the DHS replied to the KSU affirming that the list prepared is genuine and that there was no fraudulent conduct or undue influence.
The union also filed an RTI to disclose the marks of all the candidates on May 24 but even after 30 days no information was given and only “vague and bogus” reasons were provided, which makes the KSU even more suspicious and has led it to file an appeal on July 2.
However, on July 8, the 325 posts were re-advertised, to the shock of the KSU.
“The union would like to question why the said posts are being re-advertised if the DHS claims that the previous shortlisted candidates list is genuine and true. If the shortlisted candidates list is fraudulent, there is every possibility that another fraudulent list will be made again because corrupted employees go unpunished,” the KSU stated, while also questioning why, if a written examination and interview is conducted, the post is contractual only and not a permanent job.
The KSU also pointed out that the DHS has not released any advertisement for permanent staff nurse posts for several years and the union has heard claims that permanent appointments are only made after bribes are paid.
A couple of parameters in the re-advertisement have also fallen foul of the KSU, namely that work experience in private institutions will not be accepted and an application fee of Rs 500 is being charged even though it is a re-advertisement and it is the government that should compensate the candidates for wasting their time and effort.
