JKPSC, JKSSB Collect Nearly ₹49 Crore In Application Fees Amid Rising Recruitment Demand

SRINAGAR/Jammu, Feb 9: The Jammu and Kashmir Government has informed the Legislative Assembly that recruitment agencies in the Union Territory have collectively generated significant revenue through application fees over the past two financial years, reflecting both the scale of recruitment exercises and the high participation of job aspirants across the region.

According to an official written reply, the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission and the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board together collected ₹48.88 crore in application fees during the financial years 2023–24 and 2024–25. The figures highlight the large volume of candidates applying for government positions amid continued demand for public sector employment opportunities.

During the financial year 2023–24, the JKPSC collected ₹7,39,69,400, while the JKSSB realised ₹7,09,83,950. In the following financial year, 2024–25, the collections witnessed a sharp rise. JKPSC collected ₹10,50,68,700, while JKSSB registered a substantial increase, collecting ₹23,88,17,600. Overall, during the two-year period, JKPSC collected ₹17,90,38,100 and JKSSB collected ₹30,98,01,550, taking the combined total to ₹48,88,39,650.

The Government also clarified the status of recruitment processes following the implementation of the revised reservation policy in March 2024. It informed the House that while JKSSB has issued multiple advertisement notifications after the introduction of the new policy, selections have not yet been finalised. Most recruitment processes remain at stages such as examinations, document verification or final selection preparation.

Officials further explained that JKPSC primarily conducts recruitment for Union Territory cadre gazetted posts and does not handle division or district cadre posts. Since March 2024, JKPSC has advertised 1,733 posts across key departments including General Administration, Health and Medical Education, Home, Law, School Education and Skill Development. These advertisements covered crucial positions such as medical officers, assistant professors, civil judges, veterinary assistant surgeons and faculty positions in major medical institutions including SKIMS Soura and Government Medical Colleges in Anantnag and Baramulla.

Meanwhile, JKSSB has advertised multiple teaching and technical posts including veterinary assistant surgeons and lecturers in subjects such as Kashmiri, Dogri, Statistics and Punjabi, among others, indicating continued recruitment activity across education and allied sectors.

The discussion also linked recruitment participation trends to broader employment challenges in the Union Territory. The Government reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir’s unemployment rate currently stands at 6.7 per cent, which remains significantly higher than the national average of 3.5 per cent, as per Periodic Labour Force Survey data.

To address employment concerns, the Government highlighted its entrepreneurship driven strategy, particularly through Mission YUVA. The mission has seen strong participation, with more than 1.71 lakh youth registering on the platform and around 70,000 formal enterprise applications being generated.

Detailed Project Reports have been prepared for nearly 52,875 applicants, while over 47,816 applications have undergone scrutiny. So far, 16,141 cases have received bank sanctions amounting to nearly ₹1,000 crore, out of which more than ₹700 crore has already been disbursed, supporting establishment of thousands of new enterprises.

In addition, more than 7,300 entrepreneurs have completed training programmes, while about 5,000 are currently undergoing skill and capacity development training.

The Government clarified that delays in some cases are largely due to statutory bank appraisal processes under RBI norms. Around 9,500 applications were returned due to credit history issues or documentation gaps, while thousands of applications remain at advanced stages of approval and are expected to be cleared in phases through 2026.

Officials emphasised that the long term objective is to shift employment generation from traditional job seeking models toward entrepreneurship led economic participation, with Mission YUVA positioned as the cornerstone of this transformation strategy for Jammu and Kashmir’s youth and workforce.