10 months on, fate of over 7500 applicants with disabilities hangs in balance

Indore: Over 7500 individuals with disabilities, who have applied for approximately 300 positions at Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC), are losing hopes as state govt is yet to issue directives regarding the recruitment process, nearly ten months after applications were submitted.

The IMC had launched a special recruitment drive aimed at providing employment opportunities to persons with disabilities, offering both permanent and contractual roles. The application window, which opened on July 22, 2024, had witnessed a whopping 7500 applications against 300 vacant posts.

As per initial guidelines, a committee of senior IMC officials was formed to conduct the selection process based on merit.

"We have forwarded the merit list of candidates to mayor-in-council for approval," IMC deputy commissioner Manoj Pathak. Explaining the process is on hold, Pathak said, "High court, acting on certain petitions, has issued some directives concerning the selection criteria. We have now submitted the merit list along with the court's updated selection criteria to the state govt. We are currently waiting for its instructions to proceed further with the recruitment process."

The vacancies were advertised across four categories of disabilities: Visually impaired, hearing impaired, locomotive disability, and multiple disabilities, encompassing autism, intellectual disability, and specific learning disabilities. The IMC had offered a total of 300 positions across 16 job types.