A system introduced by the Kerala Public Service Commission for verifying the credentials of fresh entrants to the State government service is understood to be limping for want of adequate support from the headquarters.
Validating the testimonials of new candidates on joining service was made mandatory in the wake of a job scam during the last phase of the previous LDF government. An inquiry had found that many had secured jobs without attending the test and interview conducted by the commission. Official sources told The Hindu here that due to staff shortage the commission was unable to honour requests from various departments to depute its staff for scrutinising the documents.
A proposal to depute a dedicated team of PSC staff for certificate verification in all offices was dropped.
Then it was decided to have an exclusive section headed by an officer in each district and a section headed by an under-secretary at the headquarters here. The section has started functioning at the headquarters here, but its results so far have not been optimum.
Proposals to introduce an electronic identification system, issue a certificate with a hologram after the certificate verification and another one after verifying the biometric details of the candidates remain in limbo.
Another scam looms
Certificates issued by the commission after verification can easily be duplicated now. This may pave the way for yet another job scam, the sources said.
Even now candidates can easily enter the service on the sly with the connivance of the department heads responsible for reporting vacancies. Sneaking into departments such as Revenue, Education, and PWD, which have considerable staff strength, continues to be easy.
The lethargy of the commission higher-ups in securing the government’s approval for 100 new posts is being cited as the main impediment in plugging the loopholes in the recruitment system.
