It has been more than two years since I first became qualified to teach Hindi at the Central government-funded Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS). Located in remote areas, these residential schools help provide quality education to tribal children.My recruitment took place through the EMRS Post Graduate Teacher Hindi recruitment exam, conducted by the National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous body under the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs.In December 2023, I appeared for the exam, and a month later on 22 January 2024, I found my roll number on the final selection list. However, I am still awaiting my final appointment letter, despite the matter having been adjudicated by the court in my favour. India's Recruitment Crisis Is No Longer About Jobs. It's About Waiting'The Letter That Never Came'I have been preparing for government competitive exams since 2017. I am 32 now, and I have a wife and a daughter. Nine years of my life—essentially, my twenties—have been spent between coaching classes and exam halls.This was not my first attempt at a government job. It was one of many. Papers had leaked before. Recruitments had been scrapped before. Rules had changed after the exam was already over. I had learned, painfully, not to celebrate too early.In January 2024, when my name appeared on the final selection list, I broke down. Years of work had finally counted for something.Document verification went smoothly on 5 February 2024. Then, on 3 March 2024, I received a provisional appointment letter through a Rojgar Mela. It didn't mention a joining date or a posting, but I wasn't worried. In May 2024, NESTS asked me to resend copies of my B.Ed and MA Hindi degrees. I did, without a second thought.Then, on 1 June 2024, final appointment letters went out to my fellow selected candidates. Mine didn't arrive. Neither did those of a small group of others. For days, I called, emailed, and refreshed the NESTS website, getting nothing back.On 19 June 2024, the answer came: I was being declared ineligible. The reason: I had pursued my B.Ed (regular mode) and MA Hindi (distance mode) during the same academic session. NESTS treated this as a disqualifying overlap.I want to be clear about why this hurt so much. Pursuing one regular-mode degree alongside one distance-mode degree in the same session is a widely recognised, commonly used academic pathway in India.It is not fraud. It is not malpractice. It is how thousands of students, including many teachers already working in the system, complete their qualifications. India's Recruitment Crisis Is No Longer About Jobs. It's About Waiting'A Court Victory NESTS Has Simply Ignored'I gathered 16 documents, university circulars, UGC guidelines, and precedents that established the legitimacy of holding both degrees together, and travelled to the NESTS office in Delhi on 24 June 2024 to present them in person to a senior official.But my plea wasn't heard, and I was told that if I had issues, then I could knock on the doors of a court to get the resolution of the problem.So I did, along with three other candidates from different parts of the country who had been disqualified for the same reason. We didn't know each other before this. We fought the case together at the Delhi High Court.Two years passed. On 3 July 2026, the High Court ruled in our favour, holding that both degrees were valid, and gave NESTS six weeks to act on our appointments.That six-week deadline lapsed on 13 August 2026. Nothing happened. On our lawyer's advice, we waited another 15 days as a courtesy. Still nothing: no process initiated, no email answered, no phone call returned.On 1 September 2026, out of options, we sent a contempt-of-court notice giving NESTS seven days to comply. That deadline has also passed.'I Lost My Junior in Satya Niketan Collapse. My PG Is Just 5 Buildings Away''How Much Longer Will I Have to Wait?'I dont' know what else can I do now. I sit at home, unable to explain to my daughter why her father still doesn't have the job he was chosen for. I don't feel like meeting people. I don't feel like stepping outside. The years I should have spent building a life have gone into fighting for a decision a court has already made in my favour.I am not seeking sympathy or a favour. A constitutional court has ruled that I qualify for this job. All I am asking NESTS to do is to follow the law and issue the appointment letters we earned years ago to me and the three others fighting alongside me.We don't need sympathy. We need what is legally and rightfully ours.'Please Help Find Our Brothers Missing Since Drone Attack on Ship Off Ukraine'(The Quint has reached out to the NESTS on the issue raised by the post graduate teacher in the article. Their response is awaited. The story will be updated as and when they respond.)(All 'My Report' branded stories are submitted by citizen journalists to The Quint and the views expressed above are the citizen journalist's own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)