There are generally two sectors in economy i.e public and private. Apart from difference in the controlling authority these sectors vary in their functional aspect to a varied level. While as private sector maintains a good but specialist cadre of employees the public sector faces crisis in the right selection. As far as private sector is concerned, cadres are selected through a special drive where excellence matters.
Usually applications are attached with all the necessary documents, including experience and special skill. There hardly occurs any corruption in the lower rung employees selection due to strict standards set by the employment committee of any private establishment. The excellence matters and the attitude of candidates towards a given job is enquired while one faces the interview board. A candidate is quizzed on the prospect, aim, strategy, skill, experience for a particular position.
Like in case of IT companies a well dressed candidate with good outlook will always be enquired about IT related matters. And the result is continuous increase in purchasing powers and the revenue of company. To a slightly perverted manner, public sector candidate is selected in a nip and tuck pattern but with some unintentional errors and illegal incursions in recruitment process.
For all the posts ranging from peon to secretary at state level or at central level a rigorous three to two stage process of examination is conducted. Written exam is followed on by personality test what is termed in common language as interview. In the contemporary style of Board attitude this stage is becoming cumbersome for most of the talented youth.
The recruitment board after completion of initial formalities announces syllabus for written test. Thereafter a committee sets the paper in accordance with this prescribed syllabus. At times out of syllabus questions are posted but the overall assessment has been satisfactory. Now the error of official key at times is encountered most often. Since all these can be sorted out through face to face clarification like revised key after report of candidates to rectify any error. Hence the stage isn’t critical for committed applicants who toil hard for the passage. When the quota is eked out from big number of applicants they are rule bound to appear before an interview panel. This stage is cumbersome for some if not majority of talented candidates. This stage is vulnerable to corruption from administrative and political angle. Herein political leaders try to bargain for future votes and to get the cadres of same political lineage selected. While on the other hand the Interview as a stage is violative of selection norm due to some reasons.
Literally interview means face to face meet for assessment of candidate for a job. The assessment in today’s board isn’t in sync with knowledge of applicants. Herein the mentioning of without syllabus stage is must. Interview board isn’t bound by any syllabus periphery in the room. They are usually seen roaming from one area to other. Like a candidate is posed a puzzle to solve North Korea dispute which could be a herculean task for even a diplomat of repute. Secondly the interview panel isn’t bound by the nature of post. Fopr example a candidate to be selected for agriculture department is quizzed about computers. A recruit for police is supposed to answer the agricultural queries. These questions harm the normal connection of position and holder. A police applicant is better to be enquired about laws, constitution, policing strategy, intelligence gathering etc.
Apart from these situations an applicant is supposed to face the high knowledgeable personalities. Although it’s not in violation of norms or It’s not related to candidates failure but the unintentional failure of panel members to down their level impacts the genuine candidates performance. Like a horticulture aspirant is asked the scientific name of unknown fruit if the member possess Botany background. Once the history background member sits in the panel candidates are facing an acute sense of Depression in their mind because their background hardly matters. All this in place the new strategy of panel to ask candidate some untoward and irrelevant queries impacts the bright future. The fairy past tales and the conventional face off is over. Nowadays an applicant after entry is ambushed with queries about local folk tales. Like the interviewer in writers case is asked about Heemal Nagrai story only because mothers name read Heemal for a member. Is this attitude permissible? Doesn’t this impacts the overall performance of candidate? To ask for choice of shirt colour, suit colour, shoes and much more like entertainment favourites is in clear violation to recruitment norms. No doubt panel holds the discretion to assess the candidates GK but what ability can be assessed through query of why red colour shirt! Why train travel why not bus or aeroplane? Although these things are normal for reply but the rhythm of applicant gets disturbed on hearing such trivial queries. Once an interview panel posed writer a query ” Who’s your favourite model in india? He replied Arundhati Roy for which the member countered I am asking for model, model means actress! Does model mean actress? These nip and tuck questions disturb the normal balance of a candidate making it difficult for him/her to answer even known questions. There are lot of knowledgeable personalities in our societies roaming hither and thither even after qualifying mains of JKPSC and UPSC not to talk of JKSSB. Is interview a stage to assess? Are interviewers real assessment managers? Isn’t syllabus a mandatory norm for interview like written exam?
Conclusion of this discussion leads one to state that before board acts see where did they stand. A Commissioner Secretary as panel member for a lecturer has to act as academician not an administrative person. A history background member has to show his knowledge by posing relevant questions. It’s only when these errors are fixed that a good and worthy talent can be routed to public sector.
A flourishing private sector isn’t due to any other standard pillar of capital, entrepreneur and land but due to toil and energy of talented army of cadres selected through unbiased manner strictly as per nature of job.
Central government has taken a good decision to scrap this notorious stage for majority of posts but the onus lies on those who sit in the panel to act as per real situation rather than ideal nature of world. A man who is going to draw a meagre salary of 10,000 isn’t expected to act as a superman. Everything in present context an interview panel should do is to provide a good and conducive environment for candidate to prove himself. There’s no need to embarras or corner him/her with irrelevant queries and to put the candidadte off balance. Only after providing the applicant a favourable atmosphere inside four corners of room can a candidate slowly and steadily express who really is he. It’s unworthy to create such a tense situation where a candidate awaits exit from room rather than bothering for selection. Only after revolving around syllabus, background of candidate,nature of job ,country related basics can genuine candidates get fair trial to crack this stage. Otherwise some true and deserving candidates at times are pushed into darkness due to irresponsible behaviour of numerous such panel members. Let’s hope the concerned wake up and chart a course which will appreciate the hidden and known talent of an aspirant so that we get public servants who can bring the much awaited change to our work culture.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
