Without paying any attention to the suggestion from the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Bharathiar University administration went ahead and conducted a walk-in interview for appointment of persons to posts in the DRDO-BU Centre for Life Sciences. And, this has caused enough consternation in the academic circles.
The University called for a walk-in interview on April 24 for nine positions in the Centre for Life Sciences through an advertisement issued on April 8.
The advertisement said the Centre was looking for two lab assistants/technicians, two assistants, an accountant, two office assistants, a plumber and a store keeper.
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For a few of the aforementioned posts, the advertisement said, the University would pay on a consolidated basis and for others on daily wage basis.
The advertisement also said that the University would hold the interview at 11 a.m. at the Thanthai Periyar Auditorium.
The call for vacancies in the Centre stirred hornet’s nest among academics who said that there was no provision whatsoever in the University rules to go in for walk-in interview style of appointment, a practice that private sector companies adopted.
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The DRDO too was annoyed, as the letter from Manas K. Mandal, Director General, Life Sciences, suggested.
He asked the University to keep in abeyance the current process of appointments as it had to obtain in-principle approval from DRDO for appointments to the Centre.
But sources said that the University went ahead and conducted the interview.
Officials in the University remained tight lipped on the issue. Registrar K.G. Senthil Vasan said he was not aware of the facts of the issue.
Scientists from the DRDO said they were not authorised to speak.
Former Vice-Chancellor S. Sivasubramaniam said that the University’s action was nothing short of breach of trust. As per rules, the University made such appointment by getting the list of registered candidates from the employment office.
Registrar says he is not aware of the facts of the issue