Bhubaneswar, Oct. 7: Manish, who didn't want to be identified and preferred to use this pseudonym, joined service as a "young professional" in 2013 under an ambitious programme conceived to provide expertise to state government departments.

On joining the programme, Manish had hoped to work with senior officials and grab a permanent government job a few years later.

However three years down the line, Manish is a disappointed young man. What was initially a five-year contract has been cut short to three years. What's worse, the contracts will not be renewed after expiry and this will mean end of the road for young professionals like Manish.

"I thought the state government would hire us on contractual basis and regularise us later. It is a shock to know that the government is going to cut short the contractual period from five to three years. I am very disappointed," said Manish.

In May 2013, the government had conceived a programme with the primary objective "to ensure timely availability of skilled manpower to government offices in order to assist in planning, organising, budgeting, implementing, monitoring, auditing, evaluating and adapting of their programmes, schemes, activities and functions, so that they are able to discharge their roles and responsibilities more effectively".

In mid-2013, the Xaviers Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar, and the general administration department recruited 100 odd engineers, management graduates, doctors and chartered accountants under the young professional programme for various departments to cut bureaucratic red tape, improve efficiency and provide professional expertise.

The professionals were offered a salary package between Rs 25,000 and Rs 35,000 per month, and their tenure was fixed for a period of one year.

The original term of engagement said: "The period of tenure may be up to a maximum of five years. Normally, the young professionals may be engaged for one year and may be re-engaged in the subsequent year based on performance assessment of the previous year. Beyond five years, no further re-engagement may be undertaken."

Three years down the line, much has changed. Now, the government finds, the "young professionals" are not doing the task they were expected to do.

During a recent review, it was found that some of these professionals were "not delivering service up to satisfaction and are being retained by the respective administrative departments to discharge routine duties of assistant section officer of the secretariat".

A senior official said: "As such, the purpose for which the programme had been launched is being defeated."

So, the state government has decided to make "modifications". What was supposed to be a five-year contract has been cut short to three years.

A senior official of the general administration department said: "The young professional programme will be stopped after completion of three years. No fresh recruitment of young professionals is being made. So automatically, the scheme will cease after three years."

The official added: "Broadly, it has been felt that the young professional programme has not achieved its objectives. So the programme will be discontinued."

The duties the young professionals were discharging, as "assistant section officers", will be handed over to newly recruited employees.

The state government has appointed 800 assistant section officers in the state secretariat and chief minister Naveen Patnaik handed over the appointment letters to them at an official function yesterday.

Incidentally, the state government recruited assistant section officers after nearly two decades and as a stopgap arrangement their duties had been assigned to some young professionals.

An official gave out the government stand when he said: "There is no justification to entrust the work of an assistant section officer to young professionals any more."

Official sources said that although more than 100 youths had been recruited, at present 73 professionals were in job. Of them, 12 each are working in steel and mines and the revenue and disaster management departments, and 11 in planning and convergence department.

So, what happens to these young professionals?

Many of them have already left, as they didn't find the job lucrative. The contracts of a few, however, had not been renewed.

A young professional now working with the state government said at least three of his colleagues left the job as they were looking for permanent appointments.

"One of them got into a PSU and two got jobs with central and state governments," he said.

Another, young professional requesting anonymity said he had applied for the job hoping for better career prospects.

"As an MBA in finance, I had hoped that the job would provide me the required experience to further my career. However, the 9-to-5 job I was given in the revenue department did not provide me any exposure," said the young professional who had quit to join a private company.

A young professional posted in Balangir said he had applied for the job to gain administrative experience and the chance to interact with senior officials at the state secretariat.

"But I have been posted in an on-field job," he said.

A professional engaged with the health and family welfare department asked: "I heard that some of the professionals do not show up regularly for the job, but why would the rest of us pay for their faults?"

A senior official said the appointment was merit based and some candidates probably found it difficult to deal with the challenges. "As far as I know, this is not a typical state government job and the young professionals are expected to deliver on a daily basis as their performance is monitored closely by higher officials," he said.

At the meeting of secretaries held today, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi advised the officials to utilise the talents of young professionals in best possible manner through proper motivation and training, official sources said.