The youth of India can look forward to a Common Eligibility Test (CET) for selection to various central government jobs next year. With effect from 2021, the National Recruitment Agency (NRA), a multi-agency body, will conduct the CET to screen and shortlist candidates for government jobs, primarily Group B and C posts, which are non-technical.
There will be at least one examination centre in each district, which will make it very convenient for candidates from remote areas to appear for the test. This will also ensure that youth across the country are given equal opportunity, irrespective of their social status or location. This will be of particular benefit to women and persons with disabilities (PwD), who may otherwise find it difficult to travel to examination centres in the cities frequently to appear for multiple tests.
The first CET will take place late next year.
The NRA will serve as an independent autonomous body shouldering the complete responsibility of shortlisting candidates for specific categories, the recruitment for which is done via Staff Selection Commission (SSC), State Selection Boards (RRBs) and Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS).
While the central recruiting agencies, such as SSC, RRBs and IBPS will still carry on conducting certain recruitments as per their requirements, the Common Eligibility Test will only be conducted for preliminary screening of candidates for the jobs.
