Punjab Cabinet okays amendment for govt jobs to only those who know the Punjabi language

The Punjab Cabinet approved a change to the rules on Friday so that candidates for Group C and D positions in the state government must have “in-depth knowledge” of Punjabi. According to a formal announcement, the historic decision aims to strengthen the state’s adherence to the values of Punjab, Punjabi, and Punjabiat. The Punjab Cabinet met and decided under the direction of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

The Punjab State (Group D) Service Rules 1963 and Rule 17 of the Punjab Civil Services (General and Common Conditions of Services) Rules, 1994 both received approval from the cabinet, according to the statement. This was done to ensure that only individuals with a thorough understanding of Punjabi would be appointed to positions in the Punjab government.

It stated that the first proviso of rule 17 of the Punjab Civil Services (General and Common Conditions of Service) Rules, 1994 has been changed to read: “Provided that no person shall be appointed to any post in Group-C service unless he has passed a qualifying test of Punjabi language equivalent to matriculation standard with at least 50% marks, to be conducted by respective recruitment agencies in addition to competitive examinations.”

The Punjabi language test will be a requirement for admission, and if a candidate does not achieve at least 50% proficiency in Punjabi, they will not be included in the final merit list from which candidates will be chosen, regardless of their performance on the other exam subjects. The words “provided that” have been changed to “Provided that no person shall be appointed to any post in any service by direct appointment unless he has passed a qualifying test of Punjabi language equivalent to middle standard with at least 50% marks,” according to an amendment to Rule 5 in the Punjab State (Group-D) Service Rules, 1963.

The Punjab Cabinet has approved the exemption of specifically constructed cars used to transport the “Parkash” of holy scriptures from many religions in the state from motor vehicle taxes in order to show great reverence and respect for the precious religious writings of every religion (MVT).