Srinagar, September 21: As many as 40,672 posts are lying vacant across various government departments in Jammu and Kashmir, with the highest number reported in the Health and Medical Education Department, the Legislative Assembly was informed on Monday.
The figures were provided by the Government in response to questions raised by MLAs Sajad Gani Lone and Irfan Hafeez Lone on vacancies and recruitment.
Of the total vacancies, 3,318 are Gazetted posts, 24,427 Non-Gazetted posts and 12,927 Multi-Tasking Staff (MTS) posts, according to the Government’s reply.
The Health and Medical Education Department accounts for the largest share, with 2,125 Gazetted, 8,064 Non-Gazetted and 2,608 MTS posts lying vacant.
The Agriculture Production Department has 4,939 vacancies, followed by the Finance Department with 1,829 and the School Education Department with 1,364, the Government said.
The Government also informed the House that 17,922 posts had been referred to the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) and 2,150 posts to the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission (JKPSC) during the last two years.
It said several measures had been taken to ensure that vacant posts are filled in a time-bound manner.
“These include timely identification and referral of vacancies to the recruiting agencies, adherence to the prescribed statutory framework, advance planning of recruitment cycles, and close monitoring of recruitment timelines at various stages,” the Government said.
The Government said procedures were also being streamlined, coordination with recruiting agencies strengthened and technology increasingly used to expedite recruitment.
It maintained that the recruitment process would continue to follow the principles of transparency, fairness and merit.
The Government further said directions had been issued to all departments to ensure timely referral of vacancies falling under the direct recruitment quota to the concerned recruiting agencies.
