As of October 2024, 5,182 teaching positions remain unfilled in Central Universities (CUs), according to a recent announcement by Sukanta Mazumdar, Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha. The minister outlined that vacancies occur due to factors like retirements, resignations, and increased student enrollment, and emphasized that filling these positions is the responsibility of the individual Central Universities.
The Ministry of Education, along with the University Grants Commission (UGC), monitors the situation and ensures regular appointments are made to address the shortage. To aid in the recruitment process, the UGC has launched the CU-Chayan portal. This unified platform, introduced on May 2, 2023, serves as a central listing for teaching vacancies across all Central Universities, streamlining the application and recruitment process.
In response to the increasing demand for teaching staff, over 7,650 teaching positions have been filled in Central Universities through special recruitment drives. The CU-Chayan portal allows universities to advertise vacancies and manage the recruitment process independently while adhering to standardized procedures.
Additionally, as of October 29, 2024, a total of 25,777 posts, including 15,139 faculty positions, have been filled under a mission-mode initiative across Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs), including CUs, IITs, IIITs, NITs, IIMs, IISc Bangalore, and IISERs. This effort also includes the filling of 15,047 faculty positions, with specific reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC).
The introduction of CU-Chayan is expected to significantly improve the recruitment process for faculty positions, offering a more efficient and transparent system for both universities and applicants.
