The candidates of Group-II Mains examination scheduled to be conducted by Andhra Pradesh Public Service Commission (APPSC) on February 23, are in the grip of anxiety and uncertainty over the roster issue.
Citing errors in the roster system of notification issued on December 11, 2023, the candidates express concern that the recruitment process might face legal hurdles or even result in cancellation, similar to what happened in Jharkhand.
The Group-II job aspirants have been staging protests across the State, with a plea that the APPSC rectify the roster system before conducting the examination.
“Many aspirants are worried that if the roster-related issues are not rectified it could impact the fairness of the selection process and would affect their job prospects,” says S. Hemanth Kumar, president of Andhra Pradesh Unemployed JAC.
Citing a case in point, he said the Andhra Pradesh government issued a notification in 2017 for Assistant Conservative Forest Officer posts, with two additional posts reserved for women. However, this decision was challenged in the court of law.
Despite the ongoing litigation, the preliminary and mains exams were conducted and appointment letters were issued. “But just two days before the selected candidates were scheduled to join duty, the court cancelled the notification,” he says.
“In 2010, a Group-4 notification was issued in Jharkhand, but due to errors in the roster, the court quashed the notification on February 10, 2025,” Ummadi Mahesh, vice-president of the JAC, points out.
A. Eswar Rao, a job aspirant from Vijayawada, says that after a struggle for almost five years, the APPSC released recruitment notification for 899 Group-II posts on December 11, 2023. As many as 4,63,517 candidates appeared for the preliminary examination on February 25, 2024 and of them, 92,250 candidates were selected for the Mains examination. “Uncertainties continue to surround us ahead of the exam,” he rues.
The protesting candidates also point out that even the Advocate General has acknowledged in the court that there are errors in the notification. “The point of discussion is GO No. 77, issued during the YSR Congress Party’s tenure on August 2, 2023, which clearly said that roster points shall not be assigned for horizontal reservations for women,” says Mr. Hemanth Kumar, adding that the Group-II notification, even while saying that G.O. 77 will be followed (Page-12) on ‘Reservations’ (Para 4), it is not being done in letter and spirit.
“In Group-II notification, roster points have been reserved horizontally for women, in violation of G.O. 77,” he says.
Meanwhile, some student organisations have taken up the cause and urged the government to conduct the Mains examination only after giving a clarity on the roster issue.
On Friday, Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Y.S. Sharmila also questioned the APPSC’s ‘rigid stand’ on the issue.
She demanded that the government must hold talks with the protesting candidates and address their concerns.
