Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 16 December 2023
In a plea directed to the Hon’ble Lt. Governor and the Chief Secretary of the A & N Islands Administration, Ajoy Bairagi, State President of the BJP in A & N Islands, has urged for reconsideration of age restrictions in the recruitment process for teaching positions in the Education Department.
Citing the plight of local candidates who are fully qualified and CTET cleared, Bairagi highlighted the challenges they face in applying for regular teaching positions as Primary School Teachers (PST), Graduate Teachers (GTT), and Post Graduate Teachers (PGT). The concern stems from the latest vacancy announcement dated 8th December 2023, where many candidates find themselves excluded due to surpassing the upper age limit specified in the recruitment rules.
Bairagi emphasised the predicament faced by these candidates who have diligently awaited regular job postings since 2016, serving in various capacities within different schools while anticipating these opportunities. He drew attention to the past precedent of providing an eight-year age relaxation for both male and female candidates, which was provided during March 2016 and published in The Daily Telegrams.
The letter outlined the provision within the Recruitment Rules empowering the Hon’ble Lt. Governor to grant age relaxations in the larger interest of justice and public welfare, especially considering the significant time gap between the last and current recruitment drives, spanning 8 to 10 years. Previous representations by affected candidates were submitted to the administration, appealing for humanitarian considerations.
Requesting swift examination of the matter, Bairagi earnestly appealed for a compassionate review, urging for a minimum age relaxation of eight years for all aspiring candidates for the PST/GTT/PGT positions. The deadline for application submission is set for 30th December 2023.
The letter concluded with a plea for sympathetic consideration in accordance with the provisions of the Recruitment Rules, emphasising the need to provide justice to candidates who have long awaited this opportunity, as previously practiced by allowing an eight-year age relaxation above the upper age limit specified in the Recruitment Rules and vacancy notifications.