In a significant move addressing youth unemployment, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has stepped in to direct the state's public service commission to add a substantial number of new posts to an upcoming recruitment examination. This intervention comes directly in response to widespread dissatisfaction among job seekers over the initial announcement.
Chief Minister's Directive Follows Public Resentment
The catalyst for the Chief Minister's action was a notification issued by the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) on December 31. That notification had announced the Odisha Civil Services Examination 2025 for filling 314 vacancies across seven different state services. However, this list notably excluded several key services, leading to disappointment among aspirants.
An official release from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) stated that Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi reviewed the situation on Saturday, January 3, 2026. "Keeping in view the resentment among job aspirants, the chief minister intervened and reviewed all these posts and directed to fill the vacant posts," the release explained.
Breaking Down the Old and New Vacancies
The original OPSC plan for the 2025 exam covered vacancies in seven services. A notable feature was that 104 of these 314 posts were reserved for women. The breakdown of these initial vacancies was as follows:
- Odisha Police Service (OPS): The only Group A service in the list, with 12 vacancies.
- Odisha Taxation and Accounts Service (Group B): A large chunk with 176 posts.
- Odisha Labour Service (Group B): 98 vacancies.
- Odisha Skill Development and Employment Service: 10 posts.
- Odisha Tourism Service: 8 posts.
- Odisha Excise Service: 6 posts.
- Odisha Cooperative Service: 4 posts.
Following the CM's review, the OPSC has now been requested to include an additional 151 vacancies for the same examination cycle. This major expansion includes posts in services that were initially left out:
- 14 posts in the Odisha Administrative Service (OAS).
- 113 posts in the Odisha Revenue Service (ORS).
- 16 posts in the Odisha Transport Service (OTS).
- 8 posts in the Odisha Welfare Service (OWS).
A Push for Employment and Government's Priority
The CMO emphasized that the chief minister's recommendation will provide opportunities to a much larger pool of candidates. Mohan Charan Majhi reiterated that his government places the highest importance on the employment sector. He highlighted that approximately 40,000 government posts have been filled in Odisha in the last 18 months alone.
In a broader directive, the Chief Minister has instructed all state government departments to identify and recommend all vacant positions within their purview to the OPSC for timely recruitment. This move signals a sustained push to streamline the hiring process and reduce unemployment through government vacancies.
The OPSC is now expected to revise its notification and examination process to accommodate these 151 additional posts, bringing the total number of vacancies advertised for the Odisha Civil Services Examination 2025 to a significantly higher figure, offering renewed hope to thousands of aspirants in the state.
