For two Jharkhand teachers, the long-awaited government job they had pursued for years came when there was virtually no career left to serve.
While Chief Minister Hemant Soren handed appointment letters to 1,042 newly selected assistant teachers in Ranchi on June 29 as part of the state’s recruitment drive, at least two successful candidates had already reached, or were on the verge of reaching, the age of superannuation because of delays in the selection process.
One of them, Nandalal Ravani of Jamtara, received his appointment letter on June 29 and retired the very next day on attaining the age of 60. Another candidate, Niyum Ansari of Palamu, had crossed the retirement age on May 31, weeks before he was called to collect his appointment letter.
“I had been waiting for a regular appointment for years. I finally received the appointment letter, but today I retire,” Ravani said.
For Ansari, the appointment brought satisfaction but no opportunity to serve.
“I am happy that I was selected, but I never got the chance to work as a regular teacher. I will preserve this appointment letter as one of the most memorable achievements of my life,” he said.
Their stories underscore the human cost of delays in one of Jharkhand’s largest teacher recruitment exercises.
Nearly 12,500 candidates have so far received appointment letters under the assistant teacher recruitment drive, while appointments against around 26,000 sanctioned posts are still underway. Fifty per cent of the vacancies were reserved for para teachers, who were eligible to apply up to the age of 58.
The recruitment process began in 2023, when many para teachers were still within the prescribed age limit. However, the selection exercise stretched for nearly three years. During this period, some successful candidates crossed the retirement age of 60, leaving them with little or no opportunity to serve after their appointments.
Ravani had worked as a para teacher since 2006 and qualified for the Jharkhand Teacher Eligibility Test (JTET) in 2016. Like many others, he waited years for a regular appointment. By the time the process was completed, his retirement had become inevitable.
The unusual cases have raised questions over whether prolonged recruitment delays can deny successful candidates the very benefit for which they competed. They have also renewed debate over whether age should be protected from the date of application in recruitments delayed by administrative or legal processes.
At the appointment ceremony, Hemant Soren described the newly recruited teachers as the state’s “intellectual asset” and urged them to strengthen the quality of education, particularly in remote areas. He also launched the online Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme for teachers under the National Education Policy 2020.
For Ravani and Ansari, however, the appointment letter marked not the beginning of a new career but the end of a long wait, fulfilled only when time had already run out.