Sleeping on footpaths, queueing at 2 am: The ordeal of Pune Jail constable recruitment aspirants

Sleeping on the street

Many candidates travel from districts such as Latur, Beed, Dharashiv, Jalgaon, Nanded, Chandrapur, Gondia, Nagpur, Kolhapur, and other parts of the state, often on tight budgets and making overnight journeys.
A candidate from a small village in Nanded told the Indian Express: “My parents do masonry work. I cannot afford a hotel or lodge. A luxury bus from Nanded to Pune costs Rs 1,500-2,000, so I took the ST bus to Latur, then a train from Harangaul, and reached Pune at around 10 pm. I brought chapati-bhaji from home because hotel food is not affordable. I will try to sleep and then stand in the queue by 2 am.”

Unlike some previous recruitments, where candidates were given space to rest inside premises, such as during the Mumbai-based Mira-Bhayandar police recruitment and the Pune City Police Constable recruitment at the Shivajinagar ground and Meenatai Thakare auditorium, no such facility has been arranged for the current Jail Police recruitment. The space inside the ground has been taken up by a driver test circuit, leaving candidates with no option but to rest on the footpaths along FC Road.

Loud horns, vehicles, and the general noise of a busy road make it nearly impossible to sleep,” said one candidate. The situation is especially difficult for female candidates, who face both safety risks and an absence of washroom facilities outside the premises.

Thousands called, few toilets

Authorities, apparently trying to complete the recruitment ahead of schedule, have significantly increased the number of candidates called each day – from around 1,000 initially to as many as 7,000-10,000 now. With only one ground in use, unlike the Pune City Police recruitment, which also used an additional ground at Ramtekdi in Hadapsar, the logistics have become strained.

“When 5,000 candidates are called in a single day, a person with a queue number around 3,500 may not get their turn until noon or 1 pm. With temperatures now touching 40 degrees Celsius, this matters enormously. Running in afternoon heat significantly increases cardiovascular strain, accelerates dehydration, and raises the risk of heat exhaustion compared to early morning conditions. To avoid this, candidates begin lining up as early as 2 am, even though the recruitment officially starts at 5 am. On heavy days, tests may run as late as 2 pm,” an aspirant said.

“For approximately 5,000 candidates on a given day, only around 15 mobile toilet units are available,” he added. The heat has also raised safety concerns. In February, a 26-year-old candidate died during a police recruitment drive in Beed, a reminder of the physical toll these tests can take under poor conditions.

The track problem

The physical test includes a 1,600-metre run (to be completed in 5 minutes 10 seconds), a 100-metre sprint (in 11.50 seconds), and a shot put of 7.25 kg over 8.5 metres. Exceeding these time limits results in mark deductions.
Candidates who have completed the test have raised a specific concern: the ground track measures 400 metres on the innermost lane. When 120-150 candidates are sent off in a single batch, faster runners are pushed to outer lanes, effectively making them run 1,700 metres or more instead of 1,600. This directly affects their ability to finish within the required time.
“If they reduce the batch size to 40-50 candidates, this problem can be avoided,” said one aspirant who had completed the test.

What candidates ask for

Aspirants have put forward straightforward demands: that daily candidate numbers be matched to what the ground can actually manage; that multiple grounds be used to distribute the load; and that basic facilities like open rest space, drinking water, and washrooms be provided within the premises. “We are not asking for comfort. We are asking for a fair chance,” said one candidate.

“Capacity is limited, and we are not able to provide dedicated facilities for all.”

Speaking to The Indian Express, Additional Commissioner of Police Sanjay Patil said that with the temperature rising, they are aiming to complete the recruitment by March-end, which is why around 8,000 candidates are being summoned per day currently.On the question of rest facilities, he said a recreational hall is being provided, particularly for female candidates, with some space for male candidates as well. “However, the capacity is limited, and we are not able to provide dedicated facilities for all,” he said.

Patil acknowledged that the hall had been temporarily closed due to printing work being carried out for upcoming examinations, but said they would ensure rest space is made available there. “We will also explore other options, such as space at the Shivajinagar police station,” he added.

On the issue of using multiple grounds, Patil explained that the State Reserve Police (SRP) had begun their own recruitment from March 16 at the Ramtekdi ground in Hadapsar, making it unavailable for jail recruitment. With only around six days of the test remaining, he said it was not financially feasible, the cost running into crores, to set up at an additional ground at this stage. He also noted that some candidates also arrive a day in advance, which sometimes adds to the space constraints on the premises.