New Delhi: On Sunday, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP-RSS of attempting to “destroy the education system.” He also questioned why the National Recruitment Agency (NRA) has not conducted a single exam in the past four years.
In the 2020-21 Union Budget, the Centre had announced that the NRA would be established as an independent, professional, and specialist organisation to conduct a computer-based online Common Eligibility Test (CET) for recruitment to non-gazetted posts. The government had also allocated Rs 1,517.57 crore for its initial three years of operation.
The proposal to set up the NRA was approved by the Union Cabinet on 19 August 2020.
But, what followed were the deadlines set to conduct the examinations or to arrange for its resources that were never met and not a single examination has been conducted by the agency.
In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha in March 2022, Union minister Jitendra Singh informed that an Expert Advisory Committee was also formed by the NRA to recommend a common syllabus and scheme for the CET.
The CET was intended to screen and shortlist candidates for specific categories of posts within the central government. These posts were typically filled through the Staff Selection Commission (SSC), Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs), and the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS). Candidates who pass the CET would then undergo specialised tests or examinations conducted by the respective recruitment agencies to finalise selections.
The NRA initiative, which was introduced as a “boon for youngsters”, has not conducted a single examination since its inception four years ago.
Common Eligibility Test
The government then envisioned the Common Eligibility Test (CET) to streamline the recruitment process for various posts. The CET is designed to shortlist candidates for Group ‘B’ gazetted and non-gazetted posts (which are exempt from consultation with UPSC, Group ‘C’ posts in the government, and equivalent posts where no such classifications exist. This computer-based online Tier-1 examination will be conducted exclusively by the NRA.
The CET serves as a preliminary screening test to shortlist candidates. Scores from the CET allow candidates to apply to various recruitment agencies for subsequent level tests, which will determine the final selection. Candidates have the option to take the test multiple times, with each score being valid for three years. The highest score achieved within this period will be considered for recruitment purposes.
Unfulfilled deadlines
A year after its announcement, in February 2021, Union minister Jitendra Singh informed the Lok Sabha that the NRA was likely to conduct its first exam in 2021. But that did not happen and once again in May 2022, a year later, the government informed that there would be CET for recruitment to non-gazetted posts from that year, and the first such test was scheduled to be conducted before the year end.
Hailing the initiative as a “historic reform”, Singh had called it a game-changer, providing ease of recruitment to the job aspirants, with at least one exam centre in each district of the country. The test was also to be conducted in 12 languages, including Hindi and English, and would later on add all the languages mentioned in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution.
In August 2023, the Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice submitted its report on ‘Review of Functioning of Recruitment Organisations of Government of India’, where it mentioned how the NRA was not yet functional. It also recommended that the NRA should begin with graduate-level examinations to reduce the number of eligible candidates.
The same year, Congress Rajya Sabha member Randeep Singh Surjewala had asked the prime minister, in one of his unstarred questions, the reasons due to which the government was unable to conduct a single phase of CET in the last 3 years. Back then, the government cited the “lack of reliable IT systems and physical infrastructure” that was needed to conduct the examination.
“The conduct of CET for Group B and C posts is a total paradigm shift which requires availability of reliable IT and physical infrastructure, apart from norms/guidelines for various stages of CET, pan India. Hence, CET can be implemented only after IT and physical structure have been put in place and norms/guidelines for various stages for the same have been evolved,” Singh responded.
In 2024, there was no mention of the NRA until the Centre notified an anti-paper leak law, requiring the agency to establish norms, standards, and guidelines for the computer-based tests, among other responsibilities.
“The National Recruitment Agency, on behalf of the central government, shall in consultation with the stakeholders, prepare norms, standards and guidelines for the computer-based test mode of examination, which shall be notified by the central government,” read the rules.
(Edited by Tony Rai)