Govt job crisis: Congress poll promise hits caste hurdle in Telangana

Recruitment to Telangana state civil services has turned into political battleground. Aditi Phadnis tracks issue in a state where employment (govt jobs) was a central point during formation

The number of jobs on offer is just 563 as against more than 400,000 candidates registered with the Telangana Public Service Commission (TPSC). They are to sit for the examination, being held after 13 years, for Group I posts, the top tier in the state civil service. But just as the written main examination was about to begin, a caste dispute in the process of recruitment became so intense that the government had to order a lathi-charge to disperse thousands of protesting students in Hyderabad earlier this month.

  At the heart of the standoff is Government Order (GO) 29,