BSNL, MTNL line up massive hiring binge

At 3,400, it is one of the largest recruitment plan in telecom sector.

State-owned telephony majors Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) have embarked on a hiring spree and are recruiting a total of 3,400 staff this year.

This is one of the largest recruitments in the telecom sector. The move also gains importance as the sector is going through a lull phase, with the private sector suspending recruitment for the time being.

BSNL is recruiting 3,000 junior telecom officers (JTO) and has called for applications from engineers, who on selection would be posted in different circles of the service provider.

The need for additional hands stems from the fact that many of the company's officers have retired and the telecom behemoth has also expanded its portfolio of services, BSNL officials said.

JTOs are the lowest rung of execution officers with the telecom PSUs and are involved in planning, execution and maintenance of networks. They also take an active participation in new ventures of the companies.

The recruitment of 3,000 JTOs is the second largest by BSNL, the earlier one being in 2000, when the company added around 5,000 JTOs. The PSU, which is the second largest employer in the country, has around 49,158 employees under Group B. The JTOs also fall under this group, he said.

The company has 7,889 staff in Group A, 2,39,648 employees in Group C and 49,127 personnel in Group C as on March 31, 2004, making it the largest telecom employer in the world.

With a strength of around 52,000 employees as on March 31, 2005, MTNL is second largest employer in Indian telecom, while Reliance Infocomm is in the third place with over 40,000 staff.

BSNL is to hold a written test for the candidates on November 27, while the last date for submitting applications is October 3.

The recruitment is subject to variation depending on availability of vacancies and the tests would be conducted in its 27 territorial circles including Andhra Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Kerala and Tamil Nadu among others.

Meanwhile, MTNL is also planning to increase the number of its JTOs. The PSU, which has operations in Mumbai and Delhi, is planning to add an additional 400 staff this year.

According to MTNL sources, the recruiting would be for its E-II grade, which comprises JTOs, chartered accountants and other officials.

However, the exact number of JTOs to be recruited were not revealed, with the officials stating that a "majority of the recruits would be JTOs".

The PSU has already given its candidates a written test on September 17 and is in the process of shortlisting the future JTOs.