Neeraj Rohmetra
Jammu, Sept 14: Reeling under the shortage of faculty members in premier medical institutions, the State Government has given its consent to slash the mandatory time period for promotion of faculty members.
Further, the step is also aimed at placating the Medical Council and Dental Council, who have several times threatened these institutes of de-recognition in the wake of their failure to fill vacant post for the past several years.
Confirming the decision of the Government, Minister for Medical Education R S Chib told EXCELSIOR, “I have given my consent for the decision which is aimed at providing some relief to the Medical and Dental Colleges of the State, which have been facing acute shortage in the faculty. It had become necessary to take this decision as work in these institutions had been suffering due to paucity of staff”.
“After lot of deliberations, we have decided to slash the seniority slab for promoting the faculty members of these institutions. The decision would also go a long way in providing fast-track career advancement to the medical fraternity”, he added.
Official sources stated that the move is aimed to reduce the maximum years of seniority fixed for various levels in both the Medical and Dental Colleges in the State. “The new set of guidelines are aimed to reduce by three years the mandatory service duration each at the level of Assistant and Associate Professor. There are several other States including Punjab and Haryana, which are working with this arrangement for their professionals”.
As per the fresh guidelines, sources stated that the newly recruited Lecturer would be eligible to become a Professor in just nine years of service. “This wasn’t the case earlier as per the previous rules a Lecturer joining the medical institutes had to render three years of service for becoming Assistant Professor. Subsequently, an Assistant Professor have to render five years to service to become Associate Professor and Associate Professor would become a Professor only after five years of service”, sources said.
With new rules in place, the duration of required years of service for promotion shall be cut down to three years respectively.
Sources stated that the shortage of professionals in Medical institutions had started taking its toll on the functioning of the institutions and therefore, it had become necessary to reduce the seniority slab for promotion.
Minister of Medical Education, R S Chib had himself admitted in reply to a question in Legislative Assembly during the budget session this year that more than 50 percent faculty positions are lying vacant in premier institutions of the State– Government Medical Colleges of Jammu and Srinagar.
As far as Government Medical College, Jammu, is concerned, against 48 sanctioned posts of Professors, 26 are presently lying vacant while as 23 posts of Associate Professors against sanctioned strength of 49 are vacant. Similarly, against sanctioned strength of 67 Assistant Professors, only 33 are in position while, as 34 are lying vacant.
The Medical College Srinagar is also reeling under acute shortage of faculty members. As against sanctioned strength of 69 Professors, only five are in position and 64 posts are lying vacant. Out of 74 sanctioned posts of Associate Professors, 40 are lying vacant while as 72 posts of Assistant Professors are lying vacant against the sanctioned strength of 125. Likewise, out of 232 posts of lecturers, 124 are lying vacant.
Further, the Medical Council and the Dental Council had also sent several communications to the institutions threatening to ‘de-recognize’ them in view of their failure to fill the vacancies. “The threat was issued in view of the failure of the Government Department to fill the vacancies lying in several Departments”, sources said.
Jammu Medical Teacher Association President, Dr Tariq Azad while welcoming the Government’s move stated that the decision shall be beneficial to the medical fraternity. “It shall help to curb the growing shortage of medicos in premier institutions and their association had also called up a meeting in this context on September 22”.
Echoing similar views, President Medical Teachers Association, Srinagar Dr Kaiser Ahmad commented that the step shall help in upgrading the faculty members within shorter time frame. “It shall also help the Department to fill the vacancies thereby leading to improvement in functioning of the premier institutions of the State”
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