Get computer certified before March 2022 or forego promotion, increments: Karnataka govt to staff

Having made computer skills' certification mandatory for government jobs, the state government has now set a seven-month deadline for all its employees to get a computer skill certification.

A recent government order in this regard issued by Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR) has set a deadline of March 22, 2022 for the staff to get themselves certified through Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation (KEONICS).

The order cites the Karnataka State Civil Service (Computer Literacy Test) Rules, 2012, which specifies that all employees have to be computer literate and certified to be eligible for promotions or increments. Employees who overshoot the March deadline will not be considered for either promotions or increments, the order stated.

Even though the government set the Rules in 2012, the guidelines were not issued until 2017 and after that, the deadline was extended for several reasons including the issue of exam centres being restricted only to a few districts such as Bengaluru, Mangaluru, Kalaburagi and Mysuru, explained C S Shadakshari, president, Karnataka State Government Employees Association. Now, the government has set up centres in all districts, he said.

With the recently issued deadline, several government employees are now rushing to pass the computer test. "I myself passed the test only few days ago. With the literacy test being linked to the state's Human Resources Management System (HRMS), employees of several boards and corporations where HRMS was not implemented, could not take the test earlier. Since the HRMS is now in place, several of us are taking the test," Shadakshari added.

While majority of the employees have cleared the exam, some new recruits and older employees who were intimidated by the process were left out of the loop. All of them will now take the exam. "Although one may know how to use a computer, answering technical questions and writing an exam, needs preparation. The employees association has also distributed training material to help staff clear the exam," according to Raghu, treasurer of the association.

The syllabus prescribes basics of usage of mail, powerpoint, creating slides and usage of internet among others.