Ludhiana: The recent appointment of 26 graduates from Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University to Punjab govt positions has reignited protests by unemployed agriculture graduates demanding recruitment drives for thousands of vacant posts in their field.Through a competitive Punjab Subordinate Services Selection Board (PSSSB) process, six graduates from the College of Dairy and Food Science Technology were appointed as dairy inspectors, while 20 from the College of Fisheries were hired as fisheries officers.While welcoming these appointments, members of the Agriculture Students Association of Punjab (ASAP)—who have been protesting for months—urged the govt to extend identical hiring drives to the core agriculture sector to bolster state extension services.“We are happy to see deserving candidates from allied agricultural sectors securing govt jobs through a transparent process. However, thousands of agriculture graduates are still waiting for recruitment notifications despite vacancies in several agriculture-related departments,” said Manpreet Singh, an ASAP member.The graduates highlighted that a massive number of sanctioned positions currently lie vacant across multiple departments and govt agencies. These include roles for agricultural development officers, agricultural sub-inspectors, horticulture development officers, soil conservation officers, district marketing officers, and various positions within market committees.Protesters emphasised that filling these vacant posts would simultaneously resolve youth unemployment and provide the state with qualified professionals to tackle emerging challenges in the farm sector.
