2% quota for ex-servicemen in top 2 grades of Assam govt jobs

GUWAHATI: The Assam cabinet on Wednesday decided to reserve two per cent jobs in government’s top two grades, I and II, for ex-servicemen to introduce the disciplined work culture of the armed forces in the state.
“We want retried officers of the armed forces to come and join the government to create a new work culture in the government,” CM Himanta Biswa Sarma said in his post-cabinet briefing.
In a first, the cabinet meeting was held atop Sarania Hills at the historic Gandhi Mandap where the CM and his cabinet colleagues sat on the floor. The cabinet also decided to do away with the optional papers in Assam Public Service Commission examination for recruitment to state’s civil, police and allied services so that candidates are tested for their overall knowledge rather than their their chosen specific subjects.
Sarma said, “The APSC had requested us to abolish the two subject optional papers and the cabinet has approved it on Wednesday.”
He explained, “A student with mathematics and science as optional subjects can score full marks but not those who have literature as their optional subject. All subjects will be included in the general papers. Many states have already abolished the optional papers. Now, if a boy or girl wants to become a civil service officer, he or she needs to have little knowledge of all subjects.”