The school service commission (SSC) has begun scheduling lecture-cum-demonstrations after publishing a revised preliminary interview list for higher secondary-level teaching posts in government-aided schools, following the state government’s decision to reduce OBC reservation from 17% to 7%.
The lecture-cum-demonstrations for three subjects — political science, geography and physics — are scheduled from October 28 to 30, an SSC official said.
Interviews will be held for candidates based on the revised preliminary list across all 33 subjects at the Plus II level.
The move has left candidates who had already completed interviews and counselling uncertain about their prospects of securing jobs.
Sangita Saha, who had made it to the list of recommended candidates after clearing the interview and attending counselling before the Assembly elections, is among those worried about their prospects. At the time, the Mamata Banerjee government was in power.
Saha said the SSC’s notice issued late last month stated that the revised preliminary list had been drawn up following a revision of vacancies, replacing the interview-qualified list published in November 2025 and the final panel and waiting list released in January 2026.
The selection tests for secondary- and higher secondary-level posts were held on September 7 and 14, 2025, respectively.
“Our recommendation has been revoked. We have to appear for counselling again, after which a fresh final panel and waiting list will be drawn up. Many of us fear that we may not make it to the new panel,” Saha said.
Last month, the SSC published a revised vacancy list with a fresh seat matrix for each category for recruitment at the higher secondary level.
With the government scrapping the 10% OBC-A quota and retaining an overall OBC reservation of 7%, the number of unreserved seats has increased across all 33 subjects at the Plus II level.
“This change midway through an ongoing recruitment process has triggered panic among candidates, particularly in-service teachers who must retain their jobs by taking part in the fresh selection process,” said Saha, one of the 15,403 in-service teachers and terminated teachers declared untainted.
On April 3, 2025, the Supreme Court terminated the jobs of 17,209 teachers at the secondary and higher secondary levels in government-aided schools following a “vitiated” recruitment process conducted by the SSC in 2016. The commission subsequently identified 15,403 as “terminated but untainted”.
The Supreme Court directed them to participate in the fresh selection process to retain their jobs, allowing them to continue receiving salaries until they secured their positions through the new process.
Recruitment of assistant teachers began in May 2025, when the Trinamool Congress government was following a 17% OBC quota — 10% for OBC-A and 7% for OBC-B.
There are 12,445 vacant teaching posts at the higher secondary level.
“The revised preliminary interview list and the vacancy list have been drawn up midway through the recruitment process. Petitions challenging the changes are already being heard. I doubt whether recruitment will be completed by May next year,” said Rupa Karmakar, another of the 15,403 in-service and terminated teachers declared untainted.
Karmakar teaches Sanskrit at the higher secondary level in a government-aided school.
The Supreme Court had set deadlines of December 31, 2025, and August 31, 2026, for completing recruitment at the secondary level before extending the final deadline to May 2027 at the state government’s request.
“We have almost reached November, and only seven months remain. Given the changes to OBC reservation rules and the pace of the process, I doubt whether the fresh deadline will be met,” Karmakar said.
The SSC is yet to start interviews for the 23,514 vacancies at the secondary level.