Kolkata: In one of Bengal’s biggest hiring drives in recent years, the state cabinet on Wednesday cleared recruitment to 1.5 lakh vacant posts across various govt departments.




Nabanna sources said the appointment process was expected to be completed by the end of this financial year. A major share of the vacancies would be in police, with 12,000 posts to be filled in West Bengal Police and 4,000 in Kolkata Police .




At a fire department programme on Red Road, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari announced the appointment of 1,400 firefighters. He added that 2,500 more permanent posts in the fire and emergency services department would be created over the next year.




“Recruitment in the police or fire department cannot be done on a contractual basis, as happened during the previous govt’s tenure. We will appoint 1,400 fire personnel through the police recruitment board , including 1,000 fire operators, 325 fire engine operator-cum-drivers and 75 sub-officers,” Adhikari said.




The cabinet decision comes weeks after the CM promised to fill up by March 31, 2027 over one lakh vacant govt posts, for which recruitment will be conducted through School Service Commission , Public Service Commission and Police Recruitment Board. The latest decision pushes the announced recruitment figure well beyond the earlier one-lakh target.




The jobs announcement assumes significance against the backdrop of disruptions in the school recruitment process under the previous regime. The 2016 WBSSC recruitment process, through which around 26,000 teachers and non-teaching staff were appointed, was cancelled by Supreme Court in April 2024 after it held that the selection process was tainted.




Adhikari has repeatedly highlighted transparency in recruitment as a key part of his govt’s employment agenda. In July, while addressing a Rojgar Mela, he said the SSC would be restructured on the lines of UPSC, with non-political persons overseeing recruitment. He had also criticised the functioning of recruitment agencies under the previous govt and outlined plans to generate employment through MSMEs, entrepreneurship and skill development.




The cabinet on Wednesday also approved the construction of a modern correctional home at Nimtouri in East Midnapore and the setting up of a university named after Ambedkar. It also gave its nod to increase grants from Rs 1,800 to Rs 3,300 for every student staying in Ashram hostels under the Backward Classes Welfare and Tribal Development departments.




(With Inputs from Suman Chakraborti)