Himachal receives 98,719 applications for 1,088 police constable Posts; deadline not to be extended: CM Sukhu

Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], September 2 (ANI): The Himachal Pradesh government has received 98,719 applications for the recruitment of 1,088 male and female police constable posts, and the deadline for submitting applications will not be extended further, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said on Wednesday.
The Chief Minister shared the information during the ongoing monsoon session of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly while responding to requests for a further extension of the application period.
According to the Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission (HPPSC), the recruitment advertisement for the police constable posts was issued on July 10, 2026, with the initial deadline for applications set for August 6. Around 65,000 candidates applied during this period.
Subsequently, the state government granted a one-time age relaxation of one year for all candidates, following which the application deadline was extended by 15 days to August 21. Around 11,000 additional applications were received during the extended period, taking the total to approximately 77,000.
The government later granted a one-time age relaxation of five years to Himachal Pradesh government employees. The application deadline was simultaneously extended by another 15 days, with September 15 set as the revised closing date.
As of September 1, a total of 98,719 applications had been received for the male and female constable posts, the Chief Minister said.
The HPPSC has ruled out any further extension, stating that additional delay could affect the physical tests and the overall recruitment schedule.
The Commission also clarified that claims of technical problems with its online application portal were incorrect, saying the portal was functioning smoothly without any technical glitches.
Under the recruitment rules, the Physical Standard Test (PST) and Physical Efficiency Test (PET) for police constable recruitment are to be conducted by the Police Department across all 12 districts of the state.
The Commission said that further extending the application deadline could delay the commencement of the recruitment process, particularly with the onset of the winter season approaching in the state.
According to the Commission, the recruitment process could take around six months or longer. It therefore considered it inappropriate to extend the application deadline any further. (ANI)