Over 15 states emulate Assam’s ADRE recruitment model, more to follow: CM Sarma

Guwahati, Jan 10: More than 15 States across the country are seeking to emulate Assam’s transparent recruitment model under the Assam Direct Recruitment Examination (ADRE), Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday.

Addressing the press after distributing appointment letters to 6,182 Grade III candidates at Sarusajai Stadium, Sarma said Assam’s recruitment framework has drawn national attention, with several States studying and adopting the model.

“At a countrywide Chief Ministers’ meeting, I presented Assam’s ADRE model. Soon after, over 15 States visited Assam to study its implementation and have since begun following it in their own systems,” Sarma said.

He added that the model is gradually gaining wider acceptance. “Many States have chosen the path Assam showed. Over time, this will emerge as an ideal recruitment framework across India,” he said.

Explaining the shift, Sarma said the government had deliberately moved away from the earlier APSC-centric and department-wise recruitment system, which he described as inefficient.

“The APSC model was never ideal for us. We introduced an omnibus law to ensure that no department conducts Grade III or Grade IV exams independently,” he said.

Under the new legal framework passed by the Assembly, all departments are required to submit vacancies to the ADRE Commission, which conducts recruitment examinations centrally.

Sarma said the government also rationalised the process by conducting exams pay-scale-wise, instead of department-wise.

“There are three to four pay scales within Grade III. Conducting exams scale-wise helped us transform a complex process into an efficient and transparent system,” he said.

The Chief Minister announced that the third phase of ADRE recruitment would be taken up after the Assam Assembly elections.

“Once Bihu is over, election dates will be announced. ADRE Phase III will follow the elections,” he said.

Sarma said the state is on track to complete the current phase of recruitment by February 10, which will take the total number of regular government appointments beyond 1.56 lakh over the past five years, a figure that could touch 1.7 lakh in the coming weeks.

“Today, appointment letters were distributed to 6,182 Grade III candidates, along with 154 recruits from the tea tribe community. Completing over 1.56 lakh recruitments in five years without a single High Court case is a major achievement,” he said.

On Friday, appointment letters were handed over to 4,369 Grade IV recruits under ADRE at the Jyoti–Bishnu Antarjatik Kala Mandir.

With these appointments, the total number of people recruited into various Assam government departments over the past five years has risen to 1,56,215, the Chief Minister said, clarifying that the figure includes only regular appointments.

“Contractual jobs account for another 50,000 to 60,000 recruitments during this period,” he added.

Among the newly appointed candidates, the Agriculture Department will absorb the highest number at 1,764, followed by Panchayat and Rural Development with 799, School Education with 493, and Deputy Commissioners’ offices with 456. Other departments account for fewer than 100 recruits each.

This marks the second major recruitment phase under ADRE. In May 2023, the government had distributed appointment letters to 24,787 candidates, including 11,048 Grade III and 13,739 Grade IV recruits.