The State government on Saturday withdrew a contentious order that recognised State Eligibility Test (SET) and State Level Eligibility Test (SLET) as equivalent to National Eligibility Test (NET) to be considered a minimum criterion for direct recruitment to the posts of assistant professor in colleges under the Directorate of Collegiate Education.
The Higher Education department had come under fire after various quarters alleged attempts to dilute the appointment norms. While University Grants Commission-approved SET and SLET are not being held in Kerala, it was alleged that the order was meant to benefit candidates who had cleared SET examination in other States.
The order had been issued on the basis of a letter submitted by the Director of Collegiate Education, who requested that SET and SLET also be considered as appointment criterion and to amend the Special Rules of Collegiate Education Service for the purpose.
The State Eligibility Test being conducted by the LBS Centre for Science and Technology in the State is specifically meant for higher secondary and vocational higher secondary school teaching posts under the General Education Department.
The government withdrew its previous order citing the possibility of a confusion that could arise between State Eligibility Tests that were of different nature.
