Union minister Jitendra Singh on Monday said that the J&K government will review the controversial SRO 202 under which those appointed on government jobs have to work on 5 years probation at a salary of minimum of the pay scale.

Jitendra Singh said that the SRO 202 is not compatible with the new scheme of things and therefore, needs to be re-visited. He further added that the matter has been discussed and soon the Lieutenant Governor regime will review SRO 202.

However, he said, there should be no politics on this issue at the cost of youth.

It is worth mentioning that the SRO 202 has become a controversial issue as the youth were demanding that the rule should be scarpped as it was undemocratic and meant virtual exploitation of the fresh employees.

Jitendra Singh said this while inaugurating the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) bench for the Uts of Ladakh and J&K.

He said that interviews for jobs, particularly for the lower and Non-Gazetted posts, have been abolished to end malpractices in recruitment and also announced that SRO 202 will be reviewed.

He said it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had first suggested abolition of interviews in recruitment during his Independence Day address from the ramparts of Red Fort. In a quick follow up, within three months, Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) issued orders for the abolition of interviews from 1st of January 2016 but the government in the erstwhile State of J&K did not implement this rule, which has now become applicable and all the future recruitments in the Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh for these posts will be based purely on the written test merit, while the skill test will only be a qualifying test and not carry any marks. This, he said, is expected to bring in more transparency in recruitment and provide a level-playing field for every candidate from any background and also to a large extent, help to end the culture of providing jobs through backdoor, or jobs for recommendations or allegedly jobs for cash.

After abolition of Article 370 and Jammu & Kashmir having becoming a Union Territory, the streamlining of recruitment and other processes has begun and it will be accomplished in due course of time.

Jitendra Singh said, all the Central Acts are now applicable in Union Territory of J&K and Ladakh, and the notifications are being issued one by one. He appealed to the “habitual” critics to have patience and cryptically remarked “you endured the earlier governments for seven decades but you are not ready to give even seven months to the Lieutenant Governor who has completed seven months in office just a week back”.

Jammu & Kashmir and Ladkh, said Jitendra Singh, will now get the same benefits and dividends as the rest of India and there should be no room for any cynicism or scepticism.