State chief minister, Neiphiu Rio, felicitated and distributed appointment orders to 587 successful candidates of Nagaland Staff Selection Board (NSSB) at a programme held at Capital Cultural Hall, here on Wednesday.
In his address, the chief minister said NSSB was the outcome of the government’s long-felt desire towards meritocracy and transparency with a well-defined and structured mechanism for recruitment to group-C posts, which constituted about 70% of all posts under the state government. “Our student bodies and several other stakeholders also were urging and were keen for a centralized system which could provide our educated youth across the State a fair opportunity to apply, compete, and let their merit alone be the factor for their entry into government service,” Rio said.
The chief minister disclosed that the State cabinet, having felt the need for such a system in the interest of the educated youth, set up the drafting committee in October 2019 to come up with the regulations for NSSB taking into account the policies necessary as well as heeding to the demands made by civil society groups and student bodies over the years.
He pointed out that the first exam conducted under NSSB was the largest ever written examination in the State with more than 50,000 candidates appearing for the exam conducted in 111 exam centres across 13 district headquarters.
After having completed Computer Proficiency Test and other Skill Tests, the chief minister said the final results were declared on July 9, 2023 for appointment of 587 staff to Group-C posts under 45 state departments.
Rio observed that the successful and flawless conduct of the entire cycle of the recently concluded examination by NSSB deserved appreciation, which he maintained further strengthened the faith of the people especially the youth in the transparent system and their belief in meritocracy.
He expressed happiness that NSSB was now moving ahead towards the next cycle of examination with the recent announcement of Clerical & Allied Services Exams (CASE) 2023 for 188 posts.
He informed that the recruitment process for Combined Technical Services Exams and Combined Education Services Exams would also be advertised in due course. He appreciated NSSB for having successfully implemented fully online mode of application process incorporating IT tools to ensure error free and transparent processing.
Rio said the successful candidates had proved their mettle by competing with thousands of candidates from all over the State, adding they came out successful through their hard work and merit.
He pointed out that 49% of the successful candidates in this cycle of the examination belonged to the age group of 21-25 years.
Rio expressed optimism that with this new batch of young employees, the State government now have a very young pool of talents who would be assets for the state and help bring vital changes at the cutting-edge level in terms of digitalization of office management at the same time harness the benefits of e-governance down to the grassroots level.
He urged NSSB to continue working with dedication and commitment to ensure fair and level playing field for all educated and eligible candidates of the State.
While congratulating the new recruits, the chief minister expressed hope that they would serve the people of the State with dedication, devotion, and fairness.
Stating that not everyone would be able to come out successful in such exams, the chief minister said the government had, therefore, come up with CM Micro Finance Scheme (CMMFS) to help them venture into business so no one was left behind.
In a short speech, minister Higher Education & Tourism, Temjen Imna Along said NSSB was a “very wise decision” taken by the chief minister and which was was strongly supported by the entire cabinet.
He also hoped that through this new system, the old habit of “backdoor/political appointment” would come to an end.
Along said for a very long time politicians had been left with no option but to appoint their own candidates as a means to appease their voters. However, now with the new system, he said voters would also get the chance to vote for people who would work for them and not just appoint their candidates.
He sought the support of the people and stakeholders in order to build the new system and help it flourish. “After joining your office do not waste time playing ludo and carrom instead give your best to help the people,” Along advised the new recruits.
The minister also urged NSSB to curate their papers and interviews on a par with the New Education Policy and recruitment methods practised at the national level. A short speech was also delivered by NSSB chairman, Sedevikho Khro while chairperson of the programme chief secretary, J Alam, delivered the welcome address.
State Chaplain, Rev. TW Yamyap Konyak, invoked God’s blessings and LDA Nagaland Information Commission, Asenla Jamir spoke on behalf of the successful candidates.
Concluding remark was made by commissioner & secretary, P&AR, Asenla Kietzar while TaFMA and Senti & Hopong made special presentations.
The event was attended by a host of ministers, advisors, legislators, HoDs and members of civil society organisations and student bodies.
Addressing the media on the sidelines of the event, the chief minister said that with regard to the Amended Forest Act, the State government feels that the state was protected. He also said that while going through the Act, it was found that Nagaland was not included under the Act.
He, however, said the government would deliberate on the issue and release a statement on the same.
Responding to a query on Prime Minister announcing subsidies for gas cylinders on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, the chief minister said it was the government’s programme to help common people and that he was happy for it.