Punjab Cabinet decisions: Free bus travel for NEET candidates; age limit relaxed for lecturer recruitment
PTC Web Desk: The Punjab Cabinet has approved free bus travel for all candidates appearing in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) on June 21, extending the facility to one attendant accompanying each student.
The concession will be available on June 20, 21 and 22, allowing aspirants and their attendants to travel to and from examination centres without paying any fare. According to the state government, around 28,000 NEET candidates and an equal number of attendants are expected to benefit, taking the total number of beneficiaries to nearly 56,000.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the Council of Ministers and was later announced by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann.
Sharing details of the move, Transport and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said the initiative was aimed at supporting students preparing for one of the country's most competitive entrance examinations. He alleged that repeated irregularities in national-level examinations had created uncertainty among students and affected their morale.
Apart from the relief for NEET aspirants, the Cabinet also approved the recruitment of 156 Junior Engineers in the Civil and Electrical wings of the Public Works Department.
In another significant decision, the government granted a one-time age relaxation of five years to candidates applying for 1,013 lecturer vacancies in the School Education Department. The recruitment drive will cover 12 different subjects and is expected to benefit thousands of aspiring teachers.
The Cabinet further cleared a proposal to allow desilting contracts for rivers and seasonal rivulets to be awarded even when only a single bidder participates in the tendering process. The government said the measure would help speed up desilting work ahead of the monsoon season and strengthen flood-prevention efforts across the state.
Cheema said the decision was taken to ensure timely completion of the work before the arrival of heavy rains, reducing the risk of waterlogging and flooding in vulnerable areas.
- PTC NEWS
