Nagaland’s CTAN urges forest guard re-test, citing exam irregularities, extra candidates, and transparency concerns in recruitment process.
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KOHIMA — The Combined Technical Association of Nagaland (CTAN) has appealed to the state Forest department to conduct a written re-examination for forest guard recruitment, citing alleged loopholes and serious irregularities in the examination process.
CTAN submitted a representation to the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) on Thursday, seeking re-examination of the forest guard recruitment, the final results of which were declared in December 2025.
Addressing a press conference at Kohima Press Club, the association said that the demand for re-examination was made after examining “proof and evidence” received from aspirants. It maintained that the irregularities observed had adversely affected transparency and fairness.
CTAN co-convenor Kaqheto Kughutu said that the association had received multiple complaints over the past few weeks and held deliberations with aspirants on Wednesday, during which several concerns were flagged.
One major issue highlighted was the alleged allowance of ink or pen removers in some examination centres, which Kughutu termed an unfair practice and contrary to standard examination rules.
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He further pointed out that while recruitment rules prescribe a 3:1 ratio of candidates for interviews based on written test results, 29 additional candidates were allowed to appear for the interview, allegedly violating the norm.
Discrepancies were also noted in the number of selected candidates. While a corrigendum declared 155 candidates selected, only 154 candidates were eventually shown in the final list. CTAN also cited a case where a candidate (Roll No. 17482) cleared the interview but was disqualified three days later on age grounds.
CTAN convenor Meshenlo Kath questioned the absence of clarity on negative marking, the collection of question papers after the examination, and the conduct of the exam without OMR sheets, stating that such practices raised concerns over evaluation transparency.
Kath also alleged that candidates were charged an additional INR 300 for medical fitness despite having already paid the same amount during form fill-up. He further claimed that mandatory chest measurement and colour blindness tests were not conducted properly.
He said that only 154 posts were advertised despite 165 vacancies existing at the time. CTAN had requested that the additional 11 vacancies be advertised along with the forest guard posts, but the department opted to advertise them separately.
Kath further alleged that a candidate (Roll No. 0103), who neither qualified in the written examination nor appeared in the interview list, was included in the final results.
Warning against undermining aspirants’ morale, CTAN urged the department to resolve the matter by conducting a written re-examination. It also requested the department to requisition 26 forester-I vacancies to NSSB or NPSC.
CTAN informed that around 200 candidates have filed RTI applications seeking access to answer sheets and encouraged others to do the same.
The recruitment process for 154 forest guard posts began in July 2025, with nearly 15,000 aspirants appearing for physical tests and thousands sitting for the written examination. Results were declared in December 2025.