New Delhi: Congress MP Jairam Ramesh raised alarm over the reported significant faculty shortages at AIIMS institutions across India, pointing out that the vacancies were "staggering."
In a post on social media platform X, Ramesh highlighted the figures revealed in a recent response to a question asked in the Rajya Sabha.
"Yesterday, an answer to a question asked in the Rajya Sabha of the Minister of Health & Family Welfare revealed a most disturbing statistic relating to the seven fully operational AIIMS institutions in the country," Ramesh said, listing the vacancy rates for AIIMS New Delhi, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Raipur, Patna, and Rishikesh, all ranging from 24% to 39%.
Ramesh also noted the faculty shortages in twelve cities with partially operational AIIMS-type institutions, listing vacancy percentages as high as 59.5% in Rajkot and 54% in Bilaspur. He pointed out that these numbers not only highlight the challenges in faculty recruitment but also question the quality of faculty at these institutions.
Ramesh emphasized that while concerns about faculty quality persist, the sheer extent of these vacancies demands immediate government attention.
He wrote, "Quality of faculty apart - although questions have been raised about it - the extent of vacancies in faculty positions is staggering. What is most surprising is the position in the most prestigious AIIMS New Delhi itself, which in many ways is the mother institution. The health minister must give this the highest priority without diluting standards."
The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, in its response, had stated that creation and recruitment is a "continuous Process".
The response states, "In order to expeditiously fill vacant sanctioned positions in various AIIMS, steps have been taken by the Government."
These include conducting the Centralized Nursing Officer Recruitment Common Eligibility Test (NORCET), the Common Recruitment Examination (CRE) for Group B and C non-faculty positions, and the Institute of National Importance Combined Entrance Test (INI-CET) and Super Speciality (INI-SS) exams to recruit Junior and Senior Residents across AIIMS. (ANI)