Nagaland recruitment row: Technical body demands withdrawal of vacancy clearance rule

The Combined Technical Association of Nagaland (CTAN) has urged the state government to withdraw a provision in its September 15 Office Memorandum (OM) requiring departmental vacancies to obtain clearance from the Manpower Rationalisation Committee (MRC) and Cabinet before being sent for recruitment.

At a press conference at the Kohima Press Club, CTAN convener Mesheno Kath and co-convener Kaqheto said the association was not opposed to the entire OM but objected to certain provisions, particularly Point 2 relating to prior approval for filling vacancies.

“We are not against the whole OM. Maybe the government has some purpose. We are against some of the content,” they said.

CTAN said departments should be allowed to send vacancies directly to the Nagaland Public Service Commission (NPSC) and Nagaland Staff Selection Board (NSSB), as was done earlier, and questioned the need for additional clearance from the MRC and Cabinet.

On the ongoing Combined Staff Recruitment Examination (CSRE), the association said more than 30,000 aspirants were competing for only 11 advertised posts, while 43 additional requisitioned posts were awaiting MRC clearance.

CTAN urged the NSSB to defer the examination until the additional vacancies are cleared and included.

The association said it had submitted representations to the Chief Secretary, NSSB and Chief Conservator of Forests, raising several demands related to recruitment.

It also reiterated its demand to bring eligible Group C posts in departments currently outside the NSSB's purview under the recruitment board. These include police, prisons, Nagaland Lokayukta, police telecommunications, Home Guards and Civil Defence, Fire and Emergency Services, Excise and Forest departments.

CTAN said the recruitment system should have a neutral mechanism to ensure transparency and uniformity in filling eligible posts.

The association also raised concerns over provisions under which departments requiring additional manpower could approach the MRC and Cabinet and subsequently make contractual, fixed-pay or co-terminus appointments.

CTAN questioned whether such provisions could result in contractual appointments being made instead of regular recruitment through the NPSC and NSSB.

On Forest Department recruitment, CTAN said it had submitted a reminder to the Chief Conservator of Forests seeking early advertisement of 83 Forest Guard posts. The association said it had earlier been assured that the vacancies would be advertised within six months, by October 2026.

It also sought an update on the recruitment of Forester-I, including the status of the recruitment rules and the expected timeline for advertisement.

CTAN said it was not opposed to the government's manpower rationalisation exercise but objected to provisions that, in its view, could affect the recruitment process.

Kath said the association could return to the streets if its concerns were not addressed. He also urged unemployed youth not to depend solely on government employment and called for greater opportunities in entrepreneurship and the private sector.