Massive Job Distribution Marks Jharkhand Government's First Anniversary
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren launched a sharp critique against BJP-led opposition parties during a grand ceremony celebrating his government's first anniversary in Ranchi on Friday. The event, which saw mass distribution of appointment letters to successful candidates, became a platform for the CM to address what he called "unwanted legal hurdles" created by opposition forces after every recruitment test in the state.
The Morabadi ground in Ranchi witnessed a historic moment as 8,792 candidates who cleared the 11th to 13th Combined Civil Services Examination received their formal appointment letters. The majority of these appointments, precisely 8,291 positions, were for assistant teachers in the education department, marking a significant boost to the state's educational infrastructure.
Transparent Recruitment and Political Accusations
Chief Minister Soren didn't hold back while addressing the allegations of paper leaks and irregularities in recruitment processes. Referring specifically to the 2023 Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission's Combined Graduate Level Exam, the process of which is currently halted by the high court, Soren made startling revelations.
"Some coaching gangs patronized by certain parties peddled fake news about paper leaks and other irregularities, but many of them are now in jail as they couldn't prove any wrongdoing," the Chief Minister stated confidently before the massive gathering.
In a powerful interactive moment, Soren posed a direct question to the newly recruited employees: "Did you get this job by giving money or through recommendations and hard work?" The resounding negative response from thousands of employees became his evidence for claiming that his government conducts recruitment drives with "full honesty and transparency."
Comprehensive Employment Figures and Future Plans
The Chief Minister provided detailed employment statistics that painted a promising picture of job creation under his administration. His Government 2.0 has distributed 16,000 appointment letters in the government sector this year alone, while an additional 8,000 letters were issued in the non-government sector.
"We will keep the momentum going in the coming years," Soren promised, adding context by revealing that during his government's earlier term, they managed to provide approximately 25,000 government jobs and over 28,000 positions in the non-government sector.
The event also had an emotional component as family members of 84 martyred police personnel received appointment letters on compassionate grounds, acknowledging their sacrifices for the state.
Women Empowerment and Development Initiatives
Highlighting his government's commitment to gender equality, CM Soren pointed out that 30% of the total appointment letters distributed were to women candidates. He described this as "an excellent example of women's empowerment" and connected it to his government's flagship Mukhyamantri Maiya Samman Yojana, which aims to make the state's women self-reliant.
Finance Minister Radha Krishana Kishore, who attended the function along with several cabinet colleagues, revealed that 1.60 lakh vacancies still exist in various state government departments. "Under the CM's guidance, work is on to fill them up too at a rapid pace," he assured.
BJP's Counter-Allegations and Political Tussle
The opposition BJP didn't take the government's claims lying down. BJP working president Aditya Sahu accused the state government of "patting its own back after spending crores" and challenged the authenticity of the employment claims.
"Hemant government should tell how many vacancies have been created by it out of appointments made today. These are mostly vacancies created during the previous BJP government's tenure," Sahu countered, adding that the current government has "eliminated more than two lakh government posts."
Regarding the JSSC CGL examination, Sahu expressed that "youths are frustrated and disappointed as the exam process has been corrupted" and demanded that the government provide unemployment allowances to jobless youth.
The gala function saw participation from several prominent cabinet ministers including Radha Krishana Kishore (Finance), Sanjay Yadav (Industry), Irfan Ansari (Health), Deepika Pandey (Rural Development) and Shilpi Neha Tirkey (Agriculture), along with other senior officials and public representatives.
As Jharkhand moves forward with its employment generation initiatives, the political battle over recruitment processes and job creation figures continues to intensify, with both the ruling alliance and opposition positioning themselves as the true champions of youth employment.
