Jharkhand scraps 44 exams, 2,000 appointed staff face sack

The Jharkhand government has cancelled 44 recruitment examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission and outsourced agency TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd since 2014, following a 25-day student protest alleging paper leaks and malpractice. The list, released late on Tuesday night, includes tests for deputy collectors, civil judges, assistant professors, forest range officers, and drug inspectors. Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced an examination reforms committee under senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal and said a retired judge would probe the JPSC civil services exams.

Over 2,000 candidates who cleared the JSSC Combined Graduate Level examination and had joined government departments now face job loss. They protested outside the state secretariat, demanding individual culprits be punished rather than the entire exam scrapped. Many said they had resigned from central government jobs. The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which led the student agitation, said it would decide its next steps after clarity on implementation. Leader Devendra Mahto ended his 16-day hunger strike but announced a second agitation phase.

The Criminal Investigation Department intensified its probe, arresting two more people linked to former TDPL employee Abhay Tiwari, who investigators say confessed to a rate-card system for exam passes ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 70 lakh. The government will ask the High Court to set up a fast-track court for irregularities cases and will create internal vigilance cells in both recruitment commissions. The reforms committee has two months to submit its recommendations.