With avowed status of the shortage of coaches hampering promotion of sports activities and encouraging the existing sports talent and knowledge for investing in sports in Jammu and Kashmir, it was increasingly felt to recruit Junior Coaches. Jammu and Kashmir Sports Council (JKSC), however, like some other departments and agencies, appears to have taken the issue quite casually especially when the High Court seized of the matter, had passed necessary orders in this context in early April last year. It was clearly mentioned in the order to complete the interview and other necessary formalities at an early date but within four months. JKSC is the premier body of the sports and related matters in the UT and is expected to live up to its expected role in a transparent way but the issue of recruitment of Junior Coaches as handled by it, is bound to cast aspersions on its policies, we are afraid, towards Jammu region in particular.
On the face of it, the orders of the High Court were complied with in the sense and up to the limit of publishing advertisement/interview notice on July 24, 2019. Accordingly, date, venue, time and other details in respect of the interview were published and notified. The aspirants and eligible candidates had reason to feel satisfied and pinning hopes in the JKSC, at least in response to the intervention of the High Court, it had moved from its inertial mode. However, their joy was short lived as their hopes were soon shattered seeing another notice published on July 30 last year informing about postponement of the said interview which was to be held at Administrative Block, Bakshi Stadium, Srinagar on July 31 and August 1, 2019. The notice further made clear that fresh dates of interview were going to be communicated ”shortly”. Came August 5, the day when the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into two Union Territories. Perhaps, under its alibi , the matter was kept in deep freezer much to the predicament of the eligible candidates.
Prior to this, it is pertinent to note that JKSC had advertised for fulfilment of posts of Junior Coaches, Ground In-charge, Assistant Store Keeper, Electricians and Plumbers in which Junior Coaches alone were 48 in number. It is reported that against 48 posts, only 41 had applied and 18 aspirants were interviewed. These candidates possessed NIS Diplomas from recognised institutions. Contrary to the ”traditions”, maximum aspirants out of the 18 interviewed by the JKSC were from Jammu province.
All said and done, it is astonishing to find that the next exercise- that of short listing the candidates was not done especially for the posts of the Junior Coaches. That it should happen when the BJP partnered the Government with the PDP in the then state of Jammu and Kashmir, looks all the more surprising. We are told by the aggrieved candidates, most of whom belong to Jammu province who were expecting results within days after the process of interview, that they feel as if having been waylaid under a possible conspiracy by some politicians who were habitually wont to causing such processes to be interfered with. We may not necessarily endorse such a nursed fear but do not hesitate to point out that in matters of recruitment, appointments and even transfers of employees in Government departments and in Government owned entities , PSUs etc, probity, transparency and fair play has been very often at the receiving end in Jammu and Kashmir.
We feel the crux of the order of the High Court was beyond notification of the interviews which later were postponed never to be conducted in more than a year’s time. The trust of the aspirant candidates and others in the system was bound to get a shake especially when the candidates have obviously turned every stone to get justice by meeting the concerned Sports authorities but in vain. While JKSC Secretary must clarify the position, we expect the concerned sports hierarchy to resolve the matter at an early date.
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