The decision of Kakatiya University’s executive council (EC) to cancel 38 teacher appointments made back in 2009 and 2012 has put the institute in a fix.
The appointments followed a legal battle by candidates who alleged irregularities in the recruitment process that resulted in them not being selected. The Supreme Court, in its May 2015 judgment, had asked that a new EC be constituted and recommendations of the selection committees be placed afresh before it, and approval and confirmation of their appointments be sought with effect from the date they were appointed.
However, the newly constituted EC in October 2019 pointed out that the recruitments took place without the full quorum. Hence, it was decided to entirely cancel the two notifications for the appointments, and thereby terminate the services of the 38 faculty members recruited.
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This is bad news for the university, which has been facing staff crunch for long, in the absence of permanent teachers. There are 32 departments in the university as of now with 391 posts — that of 54 professors, 95 associate professors and 242 assistant professors. However, only 127 posts are permanent. Many of the teachers are on the verge of retirement.
Very few departments have professors and the rest are being run with the help of associate and assistant professors. The teaching is being carried out by part-time lecturers. There are as many as 191 contract lecturers and 239 part-time teaching staff currently discharging duties in various departments.