Avinash Azad
In a revelation that underscores the growing financial burden on job aspirants, the Jammu and Kashmir Government on Tuesday informed the Legislative Assembly that it has collected over ₹31.75 crore in recruitment application fees through its recruiting agencies—JKPSC and JKSSB—since October 12, 2024.
The information was shared in a written reply to an Un-Starred Question raised by MLA Sajad Gani Lone during the ongoing winter session in Srinagar, seeking details of the total fee collected and whether the government had any plans to abolish the application charges. “A total amount of ₹31,75,32,400 (Rupees Thirty-one crore, seventy-five lakhs, thirty-two thousand and four hundred only) has been collected on account of application fees by JKPSC and JKSSB from 12th October 2024 till date,” the government stated.
However, in a move likely to disappoint thousands of unemployed youth, the government categorically stated that “no such proposal to abolish the recruitment fee is under consideration at present.”
Defending the fee structure, the administration said the charges were necessary to cover administrative and operational expenses involved in conducting recruitment examinations. “The application fee charged by recruiting agencies is to meet the administrative and operational expenses incurred in conducting examinations. These include costs related to advertisement, processing of applications, printing of examination materials, deployment of manpower, infrastructure, and technological arrangements required to ensure transparency and efficiency in the recruitment process,” the reply read.
The government also maintained that the fee structure remains ‘reasonable’ and comparable to rates charged by other government recruiting bodies across India.
But the response has triggered criticism from aspirants and civil society groups who argue that the government’s recruitment record has been marred by irregularities, exam cancellations, and prolonged delays, making the collection of such huge sums “unjustified.” “Lakhs of candidates have paid fees multiple times for exams that were later scrapped or postponed. Instead of compensating applicants, the government is defending the fees as operational cost,” said a Srinagar-based aspirant.
Observers say the disclosure adds to the growing resentment among unemployed youth in Jammu and Kashmir, where large-scale vacancies across departments and repeated recruitment controversies have deepened mistrust in the system. Despite collecting over ₹31 crore in just one year, both JKSSB and JKPSC continue to face public anger over delays, flawed exam patterns, and lack of transparency in the recruitment process.
