Govt entities hiring nurses in Kerala amid chaos

Trivandrum - The test for recruiting about 100 nurses for institutions under the UAE Ministry of Health was conducted by Norka Roots.

By T K Devasia

Published: Tue 28 Jul 2015, 12:00 AM

Last updated: Tue 28 Jul 2015, 8:28 AM

The process for recruitment of nurses by government entities following the ban on recruitment of nurses for 14 emigration clearance required (ECR) countries by private agencies began in Kerala on Monday amid total chaos.
The test for recruiting about 100 nurses for institutions under the UAE Ministry of Health was conducted by Norka Roots, one of the three government agencies authorised by the government of India for recruiting nurses.
The test centre at Cochin witnessed chaotic scenes as hundreds of nurses from all over the state thronged the ill-equipped Reena Event Hub near north railway station. Though the test was conducted without sufficient prior notice and newspaper advertisements, more than 6,000 nurses reportedly turned up for the test.
Unable to accommodate all the candidates, the Norka Root officials tried to restrict the number to those who have got the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) certificate. However, the officials decided to admit everybody following protests from nurses.
Amid the chaos, the registration, which was originally scheduled to begin at 8 am, was postponed to 10 am. The test was later conducted in batches. The first batch held in the morning could accommodate only 320 candidates. The candidates who came with their families from faraway places had to struggle a lot in the absence of adequate facilities at the examination centre.
United Nurses Association (UNA) president Jasmine Shah alleged fouls play behind the exercise. He said Norka Roots had conducted an OMR test on July 25 without informing anybody. The company website published a list of 17 successful candidates later.
He told the Khaleej Times that the company had announced the test through television channels only on Sunday. A large number of nurses missed the announcement. Many from interior areas could not reach Cochin in time.
Jasmin suspects that the haste with which the test was conducted may be part of an attempt to recruit nurses through backdoor. He said that the officials present at the test centre had no convincing answers to their questions about the OMR test.
news@khaleejtimes.com