The school service commission plans to hold selection tests to shortlist candidates for non-teaching posts in government-aided schools at the end of February or early March, an SSC official said on Monday.

The commission plans to conduct the selection test before the model code of conduct for the Assembly elections comes into effect.

“The exact schedule would be decided following consent from the state government. Assuming that the elections are held following the usual April and May schedule, we want the examinations to be held before the model code of conduct comes into force,” said the official.

The sacked Group C and D staff recently held a march before the commission’s office, demanding that the selection tests be held immediately, as they have been out of employment since April 2025.

Unlike the sacked but untainted teachers, they are not receiving any salaries or allowances from the state government.

The commission had earlier planned to hold the selection tests in January.

But it put the plan on hold because the recruitment process for the appointment of teachers at the secondary and higher secondary levels had to be pushed back owing to a barrage of petitions challenging the recruitment rules, SSC chairperson Siddhartha Majumdar told Metro.

Around 16 lakh candidates applied for the non-teaching posts between November 1 and December 12 — the duration when the online application window was open.

On November 3,the commission posted a list of 3,512 “tainted” non-teaching staff on its website to prevent them from submitting online applications.

The Supreme Court dismissed 9,542 Group C and D staff, saying the 2016 recruitment process conducted by the SSC was “vitiated” and “tainted beyond redemption” last year on April 3.

The appointment of teachers for the secondary and higher secondary levels was supposed to be over by December 31.

“But following a wave of fresh court cases against the exercise, the secondary education board appealed that the deadline be extended
till August 31, 2026. The Supreme Court on December 18 accepted the appeal. As a result, the non-teaching selection test had to be deferred,” said an education department official.

The 15,403 untainted teachers will continue to get salaries till the fresh recruitment process is over.