Hon. N. Vethanayahan, Governor of the Northern Province, has directed the Northern Provincial Ministries and Departments to promptly complete the necessary procedures within two weeks, in accordance with the newly issued government circular on the permanent absorption of employees who have been serving for many years in government departments on temporary, daily-paid, substitute, contract, and concessionary bases.
A special management discussion with the Provincial Secretaries, Deputy Chief Secretaries, and Heads of Provincial Departments of the Northern Province was held today – on Friday, 08 May 2026, at the Governor’s Secretariat under the chairmanship of Hon. N. Vethanayahan. During the meeting, the Hon. Governor instructed all Northern Provincial Ministries and Departments to complete the necessary procedures within two weeks.
There have been numerous challenges in granting permanent appointments to employees recruited to government institutions on temporary, casual (daily-paid), substitute, contract, and concessionary bases, despite having completed 180 consecutive days of service. In order to remove the obstacles to regularizing these appointments under Public Administration Circulars 25/2014 and 29/2019, and to provide a lasting solution to this issue, a special proposal was presented by His Excellency the President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in the 2026 Budget. Accordingly, Public Administration Circular No. 11/2026 has now been issued.
Hon. Governor pointed out in his address that the newly issued circular would completely remove the administrative hurdles that have so far delayed the granting of permanent appointments and would bring an end to the long-standing difficulties faced by affected employees.
During the discussion, the Deputy Chief Secretary – Personnel and Training of Northern Province, S. Pranavanathan, explained to the officials the key provisions of the new circular and the mechanisms for its effective implementation.
He further pointed out that 107 employees in the Northern Province are yet to receive approval from the Department of Management Services under Public Administration Circular No. 25/2014, while 307 employees have applied for permanent appointments under Public Administration Circular No. 29/2019. He also submitted to the meeting the departmental data relating to employees who continue to remain in service.
During the discussion, appointing authorities brought to the attention of Hon. Governor the practical difficulties they are currently facing in granting permanent appointments, along with the prevailing situation in their respective departments.
After carefully hearing all the matters presented, Hon. Governor issued specific instructions to the officials.
He directed that, in accordance with the provisions of Public Administration Circular No. 11/2026, all employees who are eligible should be granted permanent appointments expeditiously within two weeks through the normal approval procedures, without any delay.
With regard to appointments requiring approval from the Department of Management Services, he further instructed that the relevant requests be submitted immediately through the appropriate channels and that the necessary approvals be obtained without delay.
Hon. Governor further stated that any employees who are not eligible for permanent appointment and cannot be covered under the provisions of the new circular should not be left out. He instructed officials to prepare and submit a comprehensive list containing their full details. He added that discussions would then be held with the relevant authorities to explore alternative solutions to address their situation.
