Raja Syed Rather
Srinagar, Apr 14: The University of Kashmir (KU) is facing a dearth of nearly 20 percent of teaching and administrative posts that have been lying vacant in the varsity—thus affecting the quality of education and administrative affairs.
The Public Information Officer (PIO) in a reply to Right to Information (RTI) filed by Jammu-based activist Raman Kumar Sharma, as of February-29-2024, out of the total 2,859 sanctioned posts in the university, at least 570 positions had remain unfilled.
The PIO said that only 9 out of 56 sanctioned professor positions have been filled, leaving 47 posts vacant.
It also said that only 29 associate professor posts out of sanctioned 120 are in place and 91 remains unfilled. In case of assistant professor cadre, 80 out of 371 sanctioned positions are vacant.
The PIO had further stated that of the seven sanctioned director-level positions, only two have been filled.
Furthermore, the university has not appointed deans for vital bodies such as the College Development Council and the Directorate of Students’ Welfare. Posts for academic coordinators and research fellows also remain vacant that are affecting the coordination and academic planning.
According to RTI, 110 out of 180 posts of junior assistant are lying vacant. In technical and specialist categories, the university is functioning without assistant programmers, auditors, Hindi typists, and junior engineers, undermining the university’s ability to provide essential support services.
It also reveals that the Physical Education Department is operating without two deputy directors and three assistant directors. In the Directorate of Internal Quality Assurance, one deputy director and three assistant director posts remain vacant.
The Institute of Music and Fine Arts (IMFA) is functioning without a principal, and only three out of seven senior instructor positions are currently filled. The Nursing Department also awaits key appointments of a professor-cum-principal, two assistant professors, and three tutors. The university has also 9 assistant librarian posts vacant.
