Odisha: 3 government job aspirants die during physical fitness test

Three candidates died during a physical fitness examination conducted by the Odisha Sub-Ordinate Staff Selection Commission for state government jobs in Sundargarh and Keonjhar districts this week.

The deceased, identified as Pravin Panda, Byomkesh Nayak and Gyanaranjan Jena, collapsed and subsequently died after being made to walk long distances. The physical fitness test includes a 25-km walk and was part of the recruitment process for the posts of forest guard, forester and livestock inspector.

The reasons for their deaths were not immediately clear. However, the death of Nayak was suspected to be because of heat, The New Indian Express reported.

Panda took the test near Sundargarh district on Tuesday. He collapsed near Kirei after covering nearly five kilometres. He was taken to hospital in the district headquarters, but was declared dead, the newspaper quoted Sub-Divisional Police Officer Nirmal Mohapatra as saying.

Nayak was among 150 aspirants who took the test in Keonjhar district on Monday. He fell ill after completing the walk and was taken to a hospital in the district headquarters. He was later shifted to another hospital in Cuttack, where the doctors declared him dead.

The circumstances of the death of Jena, who is from Jagatsinghpur, were unclear.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed his condolences and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each.

An inquiry has...

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