By Our Reporter
Shillong, Sep 30: The Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) and the Jaintia Students’ Union (JSU) on Monday demanded the cancellation of the results of the written examination of Staff Nurse and Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) conducted by the Meghalaya Medical Services Recruitment Board (MMSRB).
The two unions made the demand during a meeting with Health Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh after claiming that there were anomalies and irregularities in the results.
The MMSRB had invited applications to fill up 164 vacancies of Staff Nurses and 78 vacancies of Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM). The written examination for both was conducted on September 21.
KSU employment monitoring cell chairman Reuben Najiar told reporters after the meeting that they had found serious anomalies. He said the results of the written examination was declared twice – first in the morning of September 28 and then, in the evening of the same day following rectification. He said this had left the candidates both confused and enraged.
According to him, in the result declared in the morning, a couple of roll numbers were mentioned twice in the list of eligible candidates. He said the board had published the second result superseding the first result.
Najiar said they had opposed it as there cannot be any waiting list according to a ruling of the apex court.
“But the Health Minister and the members of the MMSRB clarified that they had kept the waiting list to fill up all vacant posts given their experience of candidates refusing to join even after getting the appointment letter,” the KSU leader said.
He said they countered it by saying it is unlikely that candidates selected for the jobs will decline to join considering the dearth of employment opportunities in the government sectors.
“We demanded that the two results should be cancelled. We said the MMSRB should publish the marks of the 6,000 plus candidates who had appeared for the written examination,” Najiar said.
Further, he said they also raised the grievances of some candidates who alleged that their marks were not up to their expectations. He said the health officials advised these candidates to approach the grievances cell so it could look into the matter.
Najiar suggested that the board should wait for a few days after the marks are published, so that any aggrieved candidate can approach the grievances cell if they are not satisfied with their marks.
“It is only then that the board can publish the results as per the vacancies,” the KSU leader said.
He said they have always insisted that there should be transparency and no favouritism in the recruitment process.
He categorically stated that there should also be recruitment rules which would be binding on the MMSRB and the Meghalaya Public Service Commission.
“We are witnessing these irregularities in the recruitment process as there are no recruitment rules which the board or the commission will have to strictly follow,” he said.
JSU president Trebor R Suchen said this is not the first time that such irregularities were witnessed in the recruitment process.
“Our government has a distinct quality in organising concerts and events. But it has failed to ensure transparency in the recruitment process,” Suchen said.
He demanded that the results of the written examination of both Staff Nurse and ANM should be cancelled.