Bhubaneswar: The Orissa High Court has ordered a one-time relaxation in the upper age limit for candidates applying for the constable/sepoy recruitment examinations in the state.

The State Selection Board of Odisha Police had issued an advertisement for the recruitment of 1,360 sepoy/constables a few months ago.

A bench of Justice SK Panigrahi today allowed a six-year relaxation in the upper age limit for candidates applying for the sepoy/constable recruitment examinations.

Justice Panigrahi has directed the State Selection Board (Odisha Police) to amend its earlier advertisement to allow the one-time age relaxation for the aspirants.

The relaxation in the upper age limit for the sepoy/constable recruitment examinations will be applicable to candidates of all categories, said the HC.

The Orissa HC pronounced its ruling while hearing multiple petitions filed by aspirants who had exceeded the age limit of 23 years for the recruitment exams.

The petitioners had urged the HC to allow relaxation in the upper age limit as the last sepoy/constable recruitment in Odisha had been conducted in 2018.

While delivering its ruling, the HC observed that the Covid-19 pandemic had disrupted the recruitment process in the state. So, the aspirants should not be penalized for circumstances beyond their control, said the court.

The HC, however, made it clear that this one-time age relaxation will not set a precedent for future recruitment exams in the state.

The Odisha Police should set up a regular recruitment cycle to avoid similar complications in the future.