Haryana Cabinet approves amendments to Group D Recruitment Act
Selection to Be Based on 100% CET Marks
Babushahi Bureau
Chandigarh, February 3, 2026 — The Haryana Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, on Tuesday approved amendments to the Second Schedule of the Haryana Group D Employees (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Act, 2018, aligning the provisions with recent judicial decisions.
The amendment follows rulings by the Hon’ble Supreme Court and the Hon’ble Punjab and Haryana High Court, which struck down the earlier provision granting 5 per cent weightage for socio-economic criteria in the selection of Group D employees. In view of these judgments, and to ensure legal continuity while avoiding future litigation, the state government found it necessary to amend the Act.
Accordingly, the Cabinet approved the amendment of the existing Second Schedule under Section 26 of the Act.
As per the revised norms, recruitment to Group D posts—except for posts where the minimum educational qualification is below Matriculation—will now be based entirely on the Common Eligibility Test (CET), with 100 per cent weightage given to CET marks.
The revised schedule also specifies that the CET syllabus for Group D posts will comprise two components. Of the total marks, 75 per cent weightage will be allotted to General Knowledge, Reasoning, Aptitude, English, Hindi and related subjects, while 25 per cent weightage will be given to Haryana-specific subjects, including History, Current Affairs, Literature, Geography, Environment and Culture. The question paper will be set at the Matriculation level.
For candidates who have already cleared the CET written examination for Group D posts held on January 12, 2024—which remains valid till January 11, 2027—as well as those who qualify in future examinations, the marks obtained earlier out of 95 will be converted into percentage terms for the preparation of a combined merit list of CET-qualified candidates.