L.B. Stadium in Hyderabad witnessed a significant gathering, hosting almost the entire cabinet, including the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister on Wednesday, when over 6,956 appointment letters were handed over to newly-recruited staff nurses.
Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy highlighted the symbolic choice of L.B. Stadium as the venue, referencing the oath-taking ceremony held there in December for the newly-formed Congress government. He said that the previous administration had neglected the employment needs of the State’s youth.
Taking a dig at former Health Minister Harish Rao, the CM spoke about the ‘dissatisfaction’ of the BRS regarding the government’s efforts to provide opportunities to nurses. “Former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and Mr. Harish Rao should see the happy faces of the nurses,” he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka appreciated the Health department for efficiently completing the recruitment process. Health Minister Damodar Rajanarsimha stressed the role of nurses in caring for individuals from birth to death. He revealed that the government had followed a roster system and hinted at the announcement of 5000 more vacancies in the health department.
Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari acknowledged the swift action of the newly-formed government in appointing staff nurses within less than two months. She also praised the higher representation of female nurses.
Minister Konda Surekha urged the nurses to build a positive reputation by serving in government hospitals, comparing it to nurses in private institutions. Ministers T. Nageshwar Rao, Ponnam Prabhakar and Komatireddy Venkat Reddy also extended their congratulations to the nurses.
After the CM’s address, the nurses were administered the Florence Nightingale oath.
The Medical and Health Services Recruitment Board announced a recruitment drive in December 2022 to fill 7,094 staff nurse vacancies. A total of 40,936 candidates applied for the positions. Subsequently, a Computer Based Test (CBT) took place in August 2023, where 38,674 candidates appeared.
On December 28, 2023, the provisional merit list was released, followed by the release of the final merit list on January 28. The final list included 6,956 candidates, who successfully secured the staff nurse positions, and 138 posts remain unfilled, specifically in the orthopaedically challenged category due to lack of eligible candidates, said a release from the Health department.
The staff nurse position offers a minimum basic pay of ₹36,750 along with allowances. Among the selected candidates, a significant portion comes from socially and economically backward classes (45.97%), Scheduled Castes (30.64%), and Scheduled Tribes (12.81%). The majority of the selected candidates are women (88.16%), with men comprising 11.84% of the chosen candidates.
Out of the total selections, 5,571 staff nurses will be assigned under the Director of Medical Education (DME) and the Director of Public Health and Family Welfare (DPH). Additionally, 736 will be placed under Telangana Vaidya Vidhana Parishad (TVVP), 253 under Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Telangana Backward Classes Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society, 117 under Telangana Minorities Residential Educational Institutions Society (TMREIS), 109 under Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TSWREIS), 81 under MNJ Institute of Oncology and Regional Cancer Centre, 68 under Telangana Tribal Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (Gurukulam), 13 under Telangana Residential Educational Institutional Society, and 8 under the Department for Disabled and Senior Citizens Welfare.
