SUCHISMITA SAHU, OP
Bhubaneswar: The State Selection Board (SSB), entrusted with the recruitment of teachers and lecturers in Odisha, is itself facing a prolonged administrative crisis, with more than half of its sanctioned posts lying vacant and no permanent board in place for over three-and-a-half years.
The agency responsible for selecting teachers and lecturers for the state’s education system has been functioning under an interim arrangement, raising concerns over the efficiency and credibility of the recruitment process.
Professor Daksha Prasad Nanda, who served as permanent chairman of the SSB, retired in March 2023. No regular appointment has been made to the post since then. Professor Gangadhar Nayak served as acting chairman until July 2024, after which Higher Education Department Director Kaliprasanna Mahapatra has been holding additional charge of the post since August 2024.
Although two officers of the rank of additional secretary have been assigned responsibilities as vice-chairman and member along with the acting chairman, the arrangement is not considered a substitute for a permanent board. The regular functioning of the office has also become largely dependent on a single secretary.
The SSB board takes several crucial final decisions relating to recruitment examinations, including fixing examination fees, deciding whether tests will be conducted online or offline, selecting examination centres, making security arrangements and handling confidential matters related to question papers.
There are also demands for appointing an experienced academic to head the SSB, as was done in the past when professors were appointed to the post. Their academic experience was considered useful in curriculum and syllabus development, examination management and maintaining the quality of the recruitment process.
However, officials from other departments are currently being given additional charge, leaving them unable to devote their full time to the SSB. This has raised concerns about the possible impact on examination management and recruitment.