1,000 aspirants for every seat: MPPSC assistant registrar exam sees massive rush

Indore: The battle for a government post in Madhya Pradesh’s higher education system is set to intensify on May 17, when more than 12,000 aspirants will appear for the assistant registrar recruitment examination conducted by Madhya Pradesh Public Service Commission.With only 12 vacancies available, nearly 1,000 candidates will compete for every single post.The examination, to be held across 31 centres in four cities, has emerged as one of the state’s most fiercely contested recruitment drives this year. The overwhelming response once again underlines how even a handful of government vacancies are drawing massive interest from aspirants across the state, particularly for university administrative posts that rarely open for recruitment.This is only the third time in eight years that assistant registrar posts are being filled through the commission. In 2018, recruitment was held for 29 posts, followed by 13 vacancies four years later. This year, despite fewer seats, the number of applications has surged to a record high.The recruitment examination will be objective in nature and conducted through OMR sheets. Officials expect the result to be declared by June, while interviews are likely to be conducted by October. The commission is aiming to complete the recruitment process and release the final selection list within the same month.However, the ongoing court case over OBC reservation has also cast its shadow on the recruitment process. The commission is currently declaring results under the 87:13 formula, due to which one post will remain on hold. While interviews and final selection will proceed for 11 posts, one seat will remain provisional until the matter is resolved.MPPSC OSD R Pachbhai said that the large number of applications for a limited number of posts shows the intense competition among aspirants for administrative positions in the higher education sector. He said the commission has completed all preparations for the examination scheduled on May 17.This is not the first time that a recruitment examination conducted by the Commission has seen overwhelming competition. Last year too, more than 8,000 candidates had applied for just 23 posts in the State Engineering Services Examination 2024, underlining the intense rush for limited government vacancies in the state.According to officials, the selected candidates are likely to be appointed in newly established universities, including institutions in Khargone and Guna, where several administrative posts remain vacant. Major universities such as Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Barkatullah University, Jiwaji University and Vikram University already have most assistant registrar posts filled.Officials indicated that more vacancies could be announced in future as a few universities, including Dr Ambedkar Social Science University in Mhow, still have vacant posts.