New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has unveiled several reforms aimed at streamlining recruitment examinations and result declarations for public sector banks, including the State Bank of India (SBI), nationalized banks (NBs), and regional rural banks (RRBs). The move aims to enhance transparency in examinations conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) and address operational challenges arising from employee attrition.
These initiatives follow a review conducted by the Department of Financial Services (DFS) under the Finance Ministry, which examined the recruitment and result patterns in SBI, NBs, and RRBs. A key finding was that newly recruited candidates often moved from RRBs to NBs and subsequently to SBI, leading to significant staff shortages and recruitment instability, according to a PTI report.
The Finance Ministry has Standardized the Recruitment and Results Timeline.
The Department of Financial Services (DFS) has advised the Indian Banks Association (IBA) to implement a standard and logical sequence for declaring recruitment results across all three bank categories. “The results will now be declared first for SBI, then for Nationalized Banks (NBs), and finally for Regional Rural Banks (RRBs),” a Finance Ministry official told PTI. This revised framework will initially apply to officer-level examinations, and the clerk-level results will be declared later in the same sequence.
The new sequencing is designed to allow candidates to make informed decisions about their preferences promptly, leading to better workforce planning and a reduction in attrition rates. “This systematic approach will make it easier for candidates to anticipate the results and will strengthen the stability of recruitment in the banking sector,” an official told PTI.
Changes in the Examination and Recruitment Process
The reforms also focus on transparency and timeliness in the examinations. Previously, RRB exams were typically held before those of NABARD and SBI, and the results were also released in the same order. According to PTI, the new timeline ensures that SBI exams and results come first, followed by NABARD and then RRB.
Furthermore, the ministry has emphasized that all officer-level results will be declared first, allowing candidates to evaluate opportunities in banks before the clerk-level results are released. An official told PTI, “This will help candidates indicate their preferences promptly and make informed career decisions.”
