JKSA seeks LG’s intervention over J&K Bank recruitment age limit, demands relaxation to 40 years; stresses priority to merit

SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) on Sunday has expressed serious concern over the upper age limit prescribed in the Jammu and Kashmir Bank’s latest recruitment notification for Probationary Officers (PO) and Banking Associates, urging Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to intervene and take up the matter with the J&K Bank management and other competent authorities in the larger interest of Jammu and Kashmir’s educated unemployed youth.

National Spokesperson of Association Dr Zubair Reshi said that while the announcement of fresh recruitment after a prolonged gap of nearly six years is a welcome development, restricting the upper age limit to 30 years has left thousands of otherwise eligible and deserving aspirants disappointed and effectively excluded from an opportunity they have waited years to pursue.

He said that the recruitment process must take into account the extraordinary delay in announcing vacancies and the ground realities confronting educated youth in Jammu and Kashmir. Thousands of candidates have spent years preparing for banking examinations, investing considerable time, resources and effort, only to find themselves rendered ineligible because of an age restriction that fails to account for the prolonged recruitment gap.

The Association particularly highlighted that the upper age limit for PO posts in the previous J&K Bank recruitment was 32 years, whereas the latest notification has reduced it to 30 years. This reduction, coupled with the nearly six-year gap since the previous recruitment cycle, has further compounded the difficulties of aspirants who have lost valuable years waiting for fresh employment opportunities. JKSA maintained that young people should not be made to bear the consequences of delayed recruitment and administrative inaction.

The Association pointed out that the Jammu and Kashmir Services Selection Board (JKSSB) provides an upper age limit of up to 40 years for Open Merit candidates in its recruitment processes. It urged J&K Bank to adopt a more inclusive and equitable approach by extending the upper age limit to 40 years, in line with the prevailing age criteria followed in government recruitments in the Union Territory. At the very least, the Bank should restore the previous upper age limit of 32 years for PO aspirants and consider special age relaxation in view of the prolonged recruitment hiatus.

Reshi also flagged concerns over the distribution of vacancies under the existing reservation framework, noting that only 542 of the 1,356 advertised posts fall under Open Merit, with the remaining vacancies allocated to reserved categories. The Association urged the authorities to examine these concerns while ensuring equitable opportunities for all eligible candidates, keeping in view the unemployment situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the aspirations of educated youth who have spent years preparing for competitive examinations.

The Association has urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to personally intervene and take up the matter with the J&K Bank management, impressing upon the authorities the need to reconsider the prescribed age criteria and provide appropriate relaxation to thousands of deserving aspirants. It also called upon the Bank to adopt a youth-sensitive approach and ensure that the recruitment process does not disadvantage candidates who have already lost several years waiting for fresh opportunities.

Association reiterated that recruitment after nearly six years should bring hope and relief to educated youth rather than create additional barriers. The Association appealed to the Lieutenant Governor and the J&K Bank management to address the genuine concerns of aspirants sympathetically and announce appropriate age relaxation at the earliest.