Modi directs 10 lakh new central government postings in next one and half years

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed a special recruitment drive so that 10 lakh candidates are recruited as Central Government Employees in the next 18 months, which might be big news on the job front but have substantial financial implications for the government. 

The prime minister's directive came after reviewing the status of human resources in all government departments.

A senior government official told that the functioning of some departments has been hampered by a severe scarcity of staff and that new recruitment has been delayed owing to retirements, even though the sanctioned number of employees in ministries has increased over time. The action could help quell opposition criticism on the issue of unemployment ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The government's decision is part of its strict intervention to eliminate unemployment. The opposition has repeatedly criticised the government on the issue of unemployment in the country. 

This declaration comes at a time when the opposition has focused on the country's high unemployment rate. On Monday, the Prime Minister's Office tweeted, "PM assessed the situation of human resources in all departments and ministries and mandated that the Government recruit 10 lakh employees in mission mode over the next 1.5 years."

The administration told Parliament earlier this year that there are 8.72 lakh unfilled positions in central government ministries as of March 1, 2020. The central government has over 40 lakh personnel approved, but only over 32 lakh have been hired. Over the years, the government has attempted to fill these vacancies with varying degrees of success.

The largest ministries and departments, such as Posts, Defense (Civil), Railways, and Revenue, have the most openings. According to information obtained by News18, the Railways Ministry has roughly 2.3 lakh vacancies out of nearly 15 lakh sanctioned positions. There are approximately 2.5 lakh vacancies in the Defense (Civil) department, despite a sanctioned strength of nearly 6.33 lakh people. There are over 90,000 openings in the Posts Department, out of a total sanctioned strength of 2.67 lakh employees, and nearly 74,000 vacancies in the Revenue Department, out of a total sanctioned strength of 1.78 lakh personnel.