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The Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) has cancelled the recruitment process for Drug Inspector (Group B) posts. The Commission took this decision following allegations of irregularities and a paper leak during the screening examination held on March 22.

The MPSC had initiated this recruitment drive for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) department. A re-examination will now be conducted for this post. Between July 22 and July 26, the MPSC received complaints from certain candidates and public representatives alleging that candidates had obtained the question paper prior to the exam. Following an investigation into the matter, the exam was cancelled, and a re-examination was announced.

Police Investigation Conducted

Upon receiving the complaints, the MPSC lodged a formal complaint with the Mumbai Police on July 27 and requested a thorough investigation. Subsequently, the Deputy Commissioner of the Mumbai Police Crime Branch submitted a preliminary investigation report to the Commission. According to media reports, the preliminary inquiry revealed prima facie evidence that one candidate had obtained the set of questions beforehand and benefited from it. However, the MPSC did not state that the entire question paper had been leaked. The Commission stated that the decision to cancel the recruitment process was made to uphold the confidentiality, fairness, transparency, and credibility of the examinations, as well as to maintain candidates’ trust in the MPSC’s recruitment process.

Drug Inspector Exam to be Held Again

The MPSC will now conduct a new screening examination for the Drug Inspector (Group B) posts. Notably, candidates who had previously applied for this recruitment will not need to apply again, nor will they be required to pay the application fee a second time. The date for the re-examination will be announced by the Commission at a later stage; candidates must currently wait for the announcement of the new date.

Recruitment Process Had Reached the Interview Stage

The recruitment notification for the post of Drug Inspector was issued on July 29, 2025. Subsequently, an offline screening examination was conducted on March 22, 2026, across six divisional headquarters in Maharashtra. The MPSC released the results of the screening examination on June 12, shortlisting 506 candidates for the interview. Interviews were then held between July 1 and July 22, with 488 candidates participating. Following the interviews, the Commission released a provisional general merit list containing the details of these 488 candidates; 485 candidates were selected for the post of Drug Inspector, while three were declared ineligible.