Maharashtra cancels ‘oral’ appointments in Ministerial offices

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Rajesh Aggarwal in Conclave on Inclusion for Social EmpowermentAI Impact Summit 2026 at IITH Knadi in Sangareddy District. File | Photo Credit: The Hindu

The Maharashtra Chief Secretary has ordered the immediate cancellation of the appointments of officers and employees made in Ministerial Offices and State Departments on deputation, on a loan basis, or merely by oral orders, without following the prescribed procedure.

In a circular issued on Tuesday (August 25, 2026), Chief Secretary Rajesh Aggarwal directed that all such officials and employees must be sent back to their parent offices by September 10.

It said “appointments were being made without following the prescribed procedure. A large number of technical personnel, including doctors, stenographers, teachers and engineers, had also been appointed. Many of them lacked training or experience in Ministerial work, affecting the functioning of the Mantralaya and established administrative processes.”

“These appointments were made without obtaining the required approvals of the parent Ministerial Department, the Additional Chief Secretary (General Administration/Services), the Chief Secretary and the Chief Minister,” according to the circular.

The State Government noted that such appointments also made it difficult for both the borrowing and parent offices to fill vacant posts. This adversely affected the functioning of the parent departments and created administrative difficulties. It also resulted in the training received by personnel in their parent departments going to waste.

Another concern was that appointments made on deputation or oral instructions did not involve verification of integrity certificates, character certificates, confidential reports, departmental inquiries and other service-related matters.

The circular said such verification was necessary because Ministerial and Ministerial office work was administrative and highly sensitive in nature. It also termed the contractual extension of retired officers and employees belonging to cadres declared obsolete or "dying cadres" inappropriate.

Under the new directions, heads of offices and drawing and disbursing officers have been asked to submit by September 15 reports confirming that officials whose appointments were cancelled have joined their parent offices.

If an employee fails to report to the parent office, the concerned office has been directed to stop their salary. The Additional Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary or Secretary of the concerned department must submit a report to the Chief Secretary's office by September 20.

The circular further directs that identity cards, face-recognition and attendance facilities linked to such cancelled appointments be discontinued immediately.