New Delhi: None of the over 10,000 candidates who appeared for an exam for the posts of accountants conducted by the Goa government have been able to clear the test. According to Hindustan Times, the results of the exam – conducted by the state’s Directorate of Accounts for 80 posts in January – were announced on Tuesday.
The directorate will now have to conduct a fresh written test to fill the empty posts, which have increased in the past months. “We now have over 100 vacancies,” an official told Times of India adding that the burden on existing staff has mounted due to the acute shortage of accountants.
Of the 80 posts of accountants for which 10,815 candidates appeared for a written exam, 43 were in the general category, 21 in other backward classes, nine in scheduled tribes, two in scheduled castes and children of freedom fighters each, while one post each was reserved for ex-servicemen and sportspersons, Hindustan Times reported.
Prakash Pereira, the director of accounts, was quoted by the English daily as saying that the exam was not very difficult and was at par with similar tests conducted for government service posts. However, none of the candidates could secure the required marks, Pereira added.
Written tests for the post of account was introduced by the state in 2012. Only candidates who possessed a bachelor’s degree in commerce or arts with economics were eligible to participate. Similar exams are also conducted for recruitment of accountants in the sales tax department.
A former employee of Directorate of Accounts told Times of India that recent new recruits have often been unable to complete their work on time. “The quality of work is bad and the burden then falls on those who are proficient at their jobs. Some (new staffers) even lack basic knowledge of the subject, irrespective of their qualification.”
Government recruitment, according to Hindustan Times, has been a sensitive issue in the state with the opposition parties frequently cornering the Goa government for keeping state recruitments on hold.
The Congress has accused the ruling BJP government of “playing with the future” of candidates by rejecting all of them. “The government is playing with the future of our educated unemployed youth. How can this be possible?” said Amarnath Panjikar of Congress.