The Trinamool Congress’ state students’ union (TMCSU) observed a one day hunger strike demanding transparency in the Meghalaya Public Service Commission (MPSC) recruitment process.
Spearheading the cause was TMCSU president Bansharailang Pyngrope, who protested against the “rampant mismanagement in employing youth of Meghalaya through MPSC examinations” directly opposite the MPSC offices here.
The last MPSC exams were held in 2019, the TMC said and even the exams for 328 posts advertised in December 2020 have yet to be held.
Citing an example of what the TMC calls the state government’s “corrupt machinery in terms of a huge discrepancy in job vacancies”, Pyngrope said, “The Chief Minister had declared 2,000 vacancies in the police department during the Assembly session but when he invited a group of protesting students, he stated that only 800 vacancies were available. The youth wants justice and transparency in the recruitment process,” adding that the exams must follow set procedures.
The recruitment process also needs improvements, such as following a strict calendar, making the marks available to the public and fixing parameters in the interviews, the TMCSU said. These measures would help make the process more transparent and curb the possibility of “backdoor entries”, Pyngrope opined.