Legal status for SSC

Legal status for SSC

News:

Statutory status to the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) recommended by Parliamentary Committee.

Important Facts:

• The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and all State Public Service Commission’s either have constitutional however the SSC is the only such organisation that performs similar functions does not enjoy statutory status.
• The SSC was created to ease the burden of the UPSC by taking over the recruitment for posts below the Group ‘A’ level

Why there is a Demand:

• The workload and responsibilities of the SSC have increased and it has remained an “attached body” under the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), and has to depend entirely on the government for all its needs, with no autonomy.
• There has been a phenomenal increase in the workload of the SSC, from 9.94 lakh candidates in 2008-09 to over 2 crores in 2016-17.
• Further the SSC would be conducting the Common Eligibility Test at three levels – Matriculation, Higher Secondary and Graduation and would attract around 5 crore candidates, making it the largest examination in the world

Expected outcome:

• Greater functional autonomy.
• Faster decision-making and efficiency in the overall performance and delivery of results by the SSC in the recruitment process.