2.3 million people apply for 368 low-level jobs posted by north Indian state

FILE - In this March 22, 2012 file photo, unemployed Indians stand in a queue to register themselves at the Employment Exchange Office in Allahabad, in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Some 2.3 million people applied for the 368 jobs when the government of India's most populous state announced job openings for more than 300 "peons,” low-level office workers who run errands and make tea. Among them were hundreds of candidates with doctorates and other advanced degrees, an indicator of the high unemployment numbers in the state and across much of India. Senior administrative officer Prabhat Mittal said Friday, Sept. 19, 2015, that the government will conduct a written exam to screen the applicants because interviewing them all would take four years. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this March 13, 2012 file photo, unemployed Indians crowd outside the Employment Exchange Office to register themselves in Allahabad in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Some 2.3 million people applied for the 368 jobs when the government of India's most populous state announced job openings for more than 300 "peons,” low-level office workers who run errands and make tea. Among them were hundreds of candidates with doctorates and other advanced degrees, an indicator of the high unemployment numbers in the state and across much of India. Senior administrative officer Prabhat Mittal said Friday, Sept. 19, 2015, that the government will conduct a written exam to screen the applicants because interviewing them all would take four years. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh, File) (The Associated Press)

When a northern Indian state announced a few hundred job openings for low-level office workers who run errands and make tea, they were staggered by the response.

About 2.3 million people applied for the 368 jobs with the government of Uttar Pradesh. They included hundreds of candidates with doctorates and other advanced degrees.

The massive number seeking the menial jobs reflects high unemployment levels in the state — India's most populous — and across much of the country.

Senior administrative officer Prabhat Mittal said Friday that the state government will conduct a written exam to screen the applicants because interviewing all of them would take four years.

The job pays about 16,000 rupees ($240) a month and requires a fifth grade education.