They had the ticket to a bright future, only to have it snatched away with one single stroke.
The scrapping of the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) gazetted probationers’ list for 2011 spelt doom for Ravi Ramaiah of Beeranahalli Kaval in Hunsur taluk. He was the first among the Soligas to clear the Karnataka Administrative Service (KAS) exam and was selected for the post of Deputy Superintendent of Police.
But his joy was short-lived with the rejection of the list. “I worked as a constable at the Metagalli police station and used to study all through the day after night duty,” said Mr. Ramaiah, who has completed his MSW from the University of Mysore. “I studied under streetlights to get through school and college. After getting selected to the constable’s post, I invested my earnings on books to study for the KAS.”
Mr. Ramaiah had opted for Anthropology and Kannada Literature for the KAS, and is now mentally drained. “It is easy for the government to say that we should write the exam again. But, this is a competitive exam and neither I nor my friends who have been selected are in the right frame of mind to study again,” he said. “Given my economic and social background, the question of me or my family members influencing the KPSC members at the interview, or bribing them does not arise,” he said.
Another crestfallen candidate, B. Basavaraju, was selected as a commercial tax officer. An agriculturist, he completed his degree and post-graduation through correspondence from the Karnataka State Open University. “I was selected in my third attempt though I had qualified for interview in my previous attempt. I am 38 now, and I’m neither young nor mentally tuned to study for a competitive exam at this age,” he said.
Kiran Kumar, a constable in the District Armed Reserve, was selected for an executive officer’s post in the taluk panchayat. Ironically, he was among the posse of policemen on duty manning the venue of the agitation where about a dozen successful candidates were staging a demonstration seeking justice.
