Darjeeling: Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) chief executive Anit Thapa has written to West Bengal Director General of Police (DGP), Rajeev Kumar, seeking relaxation in the submission of domicile certificates for candidates from the GTA region appearing for the West Bengal Police Constable recruitment process.
Thapa said he urged the DGP to consider extending the deadline for uploading domicile or residential certificates for candidates from the hills of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts, or alternatively allow provisional participation in the Physical Measurement Test (PMT) and Physical Efficiency Test (PET), with submission of the certificates at a later stage during document verification or interview.
Thapa stated that there are many candidates from the GTA area who have successfully cleared the written examination conducted by the West Bengal Police Recruitment Board for the post of Constables, 2024, and have been shortlisted for the PMT/PET scheduled to commence from January 8, 2026. As per recruitment guidelines, candidates are required to upload their domicile or residential certificates on the recruitment portal before appearing for the physical tests.
However, Thapa pointed out that the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across West Bengal has placed heavy pressure on government offices responsible for issuing domicile and residential certificates, including Block Development Offices and Sub-Divisional Offices in the hill areas. These offices are currently engaged in election-related duties such as house-to-house verification, hearings and voter list updates, severely affecting their normal functioning.
“As a result, many deserving candidates from the GTA region are facing serious difficulties in obtaining and uploading domicile certificates within the stipulated time frame, due to reasons entirely beyond their control,” the GTA chief executive stated.
Thapa stated that unless timely relaxation is granted, several meritorious candidates from the hills face the risk of being excluded from the recruitment process purely due to administrative delays. “Such a relaxation would ensure that meritorious candidates from the hill districts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong are not unfairly disadvantaged and can participate in the recruitment process without hindrance” stated the letter.
Expressing hope for a positive response, Thapa said he was confident that the DGP would consider the request sympathetically and take prompt action in the interest of fairness and equal opportunity for candidates from the hill region.