JKPDD Engineers Raise Alarm Over Soaring Vacancies, Dwindling Promotion Prospects

Ziraat Times Team Report 

SRINAGAR: Amidst an already concerning shortfall in engineering staff, the Jammu & Kashmir Power Development Department (JKPDD) faces a deeper crisis as 11 more engineers — including 7 Executive Engineers (Xens) and 4 Assistant Executive Engineers (AEEs) — retired today, pushing the department further into a personnel crunch.

According to the official vacancies chart made available to Ziraat Times, as of May 1, 2025, the department has 854 vacant positions out of a total of 2,450 sanctioned posts, amounting to a worrying 35% vacancy rate. The upper echelons of the engineering hierarchy are particularly hard hit, with 100% vacancies reported in the posts of Managing Director, Executive Director (E), JMD CVPPPL, and Secretary (Technical). Even mid-level positions like Chief Engineer (E), Superintending Engineer (E), and Executive Engineer (E) show vacancy rates of 54%, 53%, and 57% respectively.

Engineering staff within the department have expressed deep concern over what they describe as a “serious leadership vacuum” within the department and a “bottleneck” that is stalling career progression.

“With so many senior-level posts lying vacant, there is no scope for upward mobility. Capable engineers with years of field experience remain stuck in lower grades,” a senior engineer, who wished to remain anonymous, told Ziraat Times.

The impact of the vacancies is particularly stark at the Executive Engineer (E) level, where 72 of the 126 sanctioned posts are vacant, representing a 57% shortfall. Similarly, there are 148 vacancies among 497 sanctioned posts for Assistant Executive Engineers, and 164 vacancies among 608 sanctioned Assistant Engineers.

“The retirements today only worsen the situation. With no timely promotions or fresh recruitments, the burden on existing staff increases, and the quality of service delivery inevitably suffers,” said another engineer from the department.

Junior Engineers (JEs), despite forming the backbone of the field-level workforce, are also under strain, with 436 vacancies among 1,162 sanctioned posts — a 38% shortage.

Engineers across the PDD are now urging the government to expedite departmental promotions, conduct direct recruitments, and fill top posts with qualified professionals without delay. They highlight that failure to address the situation may lead to operational inefficiencies, poor project execution, and growing discontent among the workforce.

“The department cannot function effectively when more than a third of its workforce is missing. We need decisive administrative action now,” said a representative from an engineers’ association.

The growing vacancy crisis, compounded by today’s retirements, has raised pressing questions about workforce planning, succession strategies, and the overall health of one of Jammu & Kashmir’s most critical infrastructure departments.