PEB’s Assistant Engineer recruitment sparks controversy:Bhopal Corporation sends list of 17 posts without MIC’s approval, officials decide to issue a clarification letter

The Madhya Pradesh Employees Selection Board (PEB) has announced recruitment for around 300 posts under Group-2 and Sub-Group-3. Applications will be accepted from November 12 to November 25. The Bhopal Municipal Corporation Council has objected to 17 Assistant Engineer posts 15 Civil, 1 Electrical, and 1 Mechanical saying PEB has no authority to conduct recruitment for second-class posts. Information about these posts was sent without permission of the Mayor-in-Council (MIC). Because of this, retired Additional Commissioner MK Singh may face action for sending the list without approval. The matter came to light on October 30 during the council meeting. BJP councillor Devendra Bhargava said PEB cannot recruit Assistant Engineers without the corporation’s formal resolution. This is mentioned in the Madhya Pradesh Government Gazette. During the Corona period, when the Divisional Commissioner was the administrator in the council, a list was prepared. This list was sent to PEB in 2023 by the then Additional Commissioner MP Singh, even though the council has been in place since 2022. Even if it was necessary, the list should have been sent after bringing it to the attention of the MIC or the Commissioner. Information was provided to the MIC based on an old letter. Therefore, it has been requested to cancel the recruitment. Corporation Chairman said – If the exam happens, engineers will wander here and there
After the issue came to light, Corporation Chairman Suryavanshi also asked Commissioner Sanskriti Jain to write a letter to PEB soon. So that, the posts of Assistant Engineer can be removed from the exam. He informed that Councillor Bhargav had raised this issue. On this, everyone, both in favor and against, had expressed agreement. Incorrectly and against the rules, a letter was written to PEB for second class recruitment, whereas at that time the council had been elected and had come into its form. The rule states that the MIC has the authority to make appointments. Any proposal sent to PEB without MIC’s approval was not policy-wise correct. On the other hand, PEB is not even eligible for second-class recruitment. The government has established PEB for the recruitment of third and fourth-class employees. MPPSC can conduct second-class exams. Even if PEB conducts this exam, those who are appointed will also keep wandering aimlessly. Therefore, the Municipal Commissioner has been asked to clarify the situation by writing a letter to PEB soon. Recruitment for these categories
Bhopal Municipal Corporation has a total of 15 posts for Assistant Engineer Civil, while there is one post for Mechanical and one for Assistant Engineer Electrical. Thus, the total number of posts is 17. Recruitment is being done category-wise, which includes Unreserved, EWS, SC, ST, and OBC. Posts have also been reserved for women, ex-servicemen, and persons with disabilities. Direct recruitment will be done for 2 posts of Mechanical and Assistant Engineer. All posts are executive. Additional Commissioner had sent information about 36 posts
Then-incumbent Additional Commissioner Singh had sent information to the PEO on July 11, 23, for recruitment to a total of 36 posts. These include 11 posts of Assistant Commissioner, 15 posts of Assistant Engineer (Civil), 1 post of Assistant Engineer (Electrical), 1 post of Assistant Engineer (Mechanical), and 8 posts of Assistant E-Governance Officer. It was stated in the letter that all these posts are of Class II. In this regard, Singh stated that it has been two years since he retired. The matter is not in my knowledge. The letter must have been sent as per the process. Investigation PEB does not have the authority to recruit for second-class posts
After the matter came to light, Dainik Bhaskar investigated. Old government letters were also reviewed. A letter written on July 14, 2022, by Dr. Satyendra Singh, the then Additional Commissioner of Urban Administration and Development, Madhya Pradesh, came to light. In this, IAS Dr. Singh had issued instructions to all municipal commissioners of the state. It stated that after the resolution of the Mayor-in-Council, the Commissioner would send letters to the Public Service Commission for recruitment to second-class posts and to the Professional Examination Board for recruitment to third and fourth-class posts. After this, the concerned agencies would start the recruitment process. This letter was written after the gazette of the Government of Madhya Pradesh. The gazette was published on May 11, 2022. This was also mentioned in it. Exam will be held in December
The exam will be held from December 13-25. The first shift exam will be from 9 AM to 12 PM and the second shift exam will be from 3 PM to 6 PM. Candidates will have to arrive one hour before the exam.