Sahib rejects MCD job examination

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: Chief minister Sahib Singh Verma has said that there is no need for conducting a recruitment examination for assistant eng...

NEW DELHI, Jan 8: Chief minister Sahib Singh Verma has said that there is no need for conducting a recruitment examination for assistant engineers for the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. The test was announced a month back and was scheduled to be conducted by the Delhi Subordinate Selection Board on January 11, 1998.

Stressing that a chance should be given to the degree-holders inside the MCD, Sahib Singh today said, “There are so many engineering graduates on the MCD staff. They should be given promotion to the ranks of assistant engineers. There is no need for conducting a test to recruit people directly.”

He said that he had sought an application from the MCD seeking for a change in recruitment rules. “I am all for postponement of the examination and if the MCD desires that the rules of recruitment should be changed then it should inform the Delhi Government and we will take steps accordingly.”

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Interestingly, Sahib Singh’s instructions came just a few hours after a press statement by the CongressMLA from Hastal, Mukesh Sharma, alleging irregularities in the test for recruiting assistant engineers.

Mukesh Sharma in his statement alleged that the process of examination was suspect because of the format of the question paper. “I feel that the test paper leaves scope for tampering,” he said.

Demanding that the test should be immediately cancelled, he said, “I will write to the Chief Election Commissioner M.S. Gill pointing out that the Delhi Government is flouting Election Commission poll guidelines by conducting this test. I am also going to put the case before the CBI and seek an inquiry.”

Pointing out that the exam rules do not allow the experienced engineers of the MCD to take part he says, “The age limit was earlier specially relaxed for engineers of the MCD, so that those who have put in 10 to 15 years of service can be taken in.” This was not possible in the new test rules, because he said, “The age limit has been reduced to 35 years.”

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Earlier in the day, the Junior Engineers’ Association wrote to the Chief Minister pointing out that to safeguard the interests of the junior engineers by “withdrawing the test.”

Condemning the newly-introduced age limit, vice-president of the association Aslam Khan said, “Even the municipal commissioner agreed with our demand that most of the vacancies should be filled up by internal promotions. Most of the engineers here retire as junior engineers, a situation against which we have been protesting for a long time now.”

On the test process, he said, “We feel in the format of the test paper there is a major lacuna which could encourage corruption.”