Jammu: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said a panel has been formed to address the issue of regularisation of daily-wagers in the Union Territory, which will submit its recommendations to the government in six months.
The chief minister also said the National Conference government is committed to ensuring speedy recruitment to fill the vacant posts in government services in Jammu and Kashmir.
Responding to a question by BJP MLA Satish Sharma in the Assembly, Abdullah said, “A committee was announced in the Assembly last time, and a formal order was issued (for its formation). The committee has been constituted under the chief secretary to examine the issue.”
The panel has been given a six-month time to assess the matter, and once the recommendations are received, the government will act accordingly, the chief minister said.
The J&K government on Wednesday constituted a six-member committee to examine the issues related to the regularisation of daily-wage workers in the Union Territory.
On the issue of fast-track recruitment, Abdullah reaffirmed the government’s commitment to filling vacancies efficiently.
“The J&K government has accelerated its recruitment process, filling over 15,000 vacancies in the past two years. As many as 13,466 non-gazetted vacancies were referred to the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) in the past two years, of which 9,351 selections have been completed.
“Similarly, out of the 2,390 gazetted vacancies referred to the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC), 2,175 selections have been made,” Abdullah said.
The chief minister also said that efforts are underway to further streamline hiring.
“We have identified 10,757 multi-task service (MTS) vacancies currently under review by the finance department. These positions will be referred to the recruiting agencies soon. Additionally, 6,000 vacancies are ready for referral and will be sent for recruitment shortly,” he said.
To speed up the recruitment process, the government had abolished interviews for all posts up to Pay Level 5 (Rs 29,200-92,300). A recent order dated February 14 has removed the interview requirement for Level 6 posts, including for junior engineers and naib tehsildars.
Emphasising that the government is enhancing transparency and efficiency in recruitment, the chief minister said, “To ensure fair hiring, recruitment regulations were revised and notified on November 22, 2022. Now, computer-based written exams will be conducted, and a single exam will be held for multiple posts wherever possible.”
The JKPSC and the JKSSB have been directed to adopt a target-based approach and complete recruitment within a set time frame.
“We aim to fill 1,502 gazetted and 5,751 non-gazetted vacancies by the end of this year, including 150 junior engineer posts recently referred to the JKSSB,” Abdullah said.
Recruitment in the higher education department is also progressing, he added.
“We are processing 150 gazetted vacancies for assistant professors, librarians and physical training instructors. Out of the 840 vacancies already referred, 476 have been filled, and the selection process for the remaining 364 is going on. Additionally, 116 non-gazetted vacancies have been sent for financial clearance,” Abdullah said.
The chief minister also reaffirmed that the government’s focus is on expediting recruitment, ensuring fairness, and increasing employment opportunities across Jammu and Kashmir.
CM says verification process cannot be used as weapon
Stating that a person cannot be punished for crimes of his relatives, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) would be asked to adhere to the recent High Court ruling on verification process.
Speaking in the Legislative Assembly during grants of departments headed by him, Omar Abdullah said verification process cannot be used as a weapon.
“When we prevent anyone from getting a job on the basis of CID verification, it means we are using it as weapon. It is not the job of CID to be used as a weapon,” he said.
Omar said the High Court rightly held in February this year that a person cannot be punished for crimes of his relatives.
“There is no law anywhere in the world that you will punish a son for the crimes of his father. There is a principle: B cannot be punished for crimes of A,” he said.
Omar said that CID would be asked to adhere to the High Court order on verification process.
In February this year, the HC ruled that a criminal family background cannot serve as a valid reason for denying a passport application.
Pace or spin, intention is to win the game: Omar Abdullah
“Those who changed the map of J&K, and his state subject laws; changed Ranbir Penal Code, are the ones who have insulted Maharaja”
Amid speculation that he is moving close to the BJP, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday said he is not the one who starts one game and ends up playing another, and asserted that he has just changed his tactics.
Abdullah said he is not afraid of talking on any issue and also challenged the BJP to prove that his party ever insulted the last Dogra king Maharaja Hari Singh.
Winding up the discussion on ‘demands for grants’ concerning his departments in the Legislative Assembly, the chief minister expressed confidence of emerging victorious at the end of his term, as he targeted opposition BJP for repeatedly raking up the August 2019 developments in the House.
“The intelligent captain and player is the one who adapts to the situation and changes his tactics and not the game. I have not changed the game as I still wear the white cricketing uniform.
“I was doing fast bowling because the Australian pitches support the pace but the BCCI pitches are meant for spin and now I am bowling spin deliveries. The purpose is that we emerge victorious,” Abdullah said amid thumping of desks by the treasury benches.
Starting his over one-hour-long speech in Kashmiri saying “Wandi Tchali Sheen Gali Bei Ye Bahar” (the winter will be over, now snow will melt away and spring will return), Abdullah said, “We are not those who start somewhere else and then end up playing another game. We have come to play cricket and with the blessings of almighty will be winners after our five years term.”
Referring to the speech of Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma who praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for bringing J&K at par with rest of the country by abrogating Article 370 in 2019, the chief minister said though he is looking for spring outside, some things are not going to change inside the House – the verbal duels, ruckus and allegations.
“We are the ones who are not afraid of talking on any issue. Our track record says that we never escape a question and we are not the ones who demand questionnaires before an interview. We are not the ones who meet their favourites only. We are the ones who are always ready to face tough questions and give straight forward replies,” he said.
After hearing the speech from the opposition benches, he said it is futile to bring a prepared speech because most of their talk revolves around two or three issues.
“The LoP talked about equality in J&K after the August 5 development. I want to ask whether he feels that this assembly is at par with other assemblies in the country. Keep your hand on your heart and tell us whether we are equal to our neighbouring states,” he said.
Abdullah said then there was a talk about insulting the Maharaja. “When you do not have anything else to speak, they level this allegation. (BJP’s R S) Pathania accused us of insulting Maharaja. The fact is that it was they (BJP) which changed the map of his state and also the state subject laws which he had enacted to safeguard Jammu from Punjab investors.”
“Pathania is a lawyer…tell us under which law you were practising in the court before 2019. The Ranbir Penal Code which was named after Maharaja Ranbir Singh. But today, you are no longer practising under RPC,” Abdullah said, as LoP Sharma quipped that now he (Pathania) is practising under ‘Bharat’.
“You people have changed the name so who insulted Maharaja. As per your speech, if the investors from Haryana and Punjab set up their units here it is good because this is one India. Give the same lesson to the people in neighbouring states, especially Himachal Pradesh.
“How much difficult it is to set up a unit in Himachal Pradesh is anybody’s guess… It is very easy to speak about equality but the reality is that equality is not there and we have been sold. A Sri Lankan cricketer was given land in Kathua but he withdrew. We have been saying from day one that it is not Kashmir which faces the threat but the Jammu region. The road to Kashmir goes through Jammu,” he said.
When the LoP said they are capable of dealing with it, the chief minister said “we have a concern because you’re not (capable)” and advised him to go through the history when Maharaja introduced the state subject laws to protect the people of Jammu from Punjab investors in 1927 and not Kashmiris.
Abdullah also took exception to the repeated interventions by Sharma.
“I do not have the habit of making a running commentary. I will do the same when you start speaking next time. You are advising others to remain silent during your speech but what are you doing yourself? I heard the speeches of 50 members from both sides,” the chief minister said.
He said it is very easy for him to keep aside all departments and make a political speech but “that will be injustice with this house and with my own responsibilities.”
Press Club to be re-established in Srinagar: CM
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah announced today in the Assembly that the Press Club in Srinagar will be re-established.
Addressing the House, he stated that journalists would be asked to form a managing committee, which would oversee elections for its leadership.
The Chief Minister emphasized the need for a unified Press Club, indicating that there should be only one such institution in the city.
This statement comes amid growing demands from the journalist community for a dedicated space to facilitate their work. While no specific timeline was provided, the announcement signals the government’s intent to restore a formal platform for media professionals in Srinagar.
He further said that there are grievances that pick-and-choose policy in used in releasing advertisements to newspapers.
“I want to assure the House that there would no discrimination or pick-and-choose policy in advertisements and they would be distributed in a transparent manner,” he said, adding that a newspaper surviving only on government advertisements cannot do job of a newspaper.
He said he wants to assure media that nobody would be punished for speaking truth. “You should highlight our mistakes and make people aware about faults but there should be no scope for unverified and fake news,” he said,
