Petition in Madras HC to revamp Faculty Appointments at Institutes of National Importance

A petition has been filed with the Madras High Court calling for the revamp of the existing system of faculty appointments at Institutes of National Importance such as National Institutes of Technology (NITs), Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institutes of Science and Educational Research (IISERs)..Party in person, Advocate VBR Menon appeared yesterday before the First Bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar..In his petition, Menon has contended that current qualification criteria and the procedure followed in making faculty appointments is neither transparent nor objective. Candidates are not aware of the criteria based on which short lists are made, the weightage given for different components in the selection process, or the methodology adopted to make appointments..The absence of uniform and transparent criteria in these matters has lead to corruption, secrecy, mediocrity and irregularities in faculty selection and appointment, the petition states..It has been contended that the following areas, inter alia, are in need of redressal:.Various flaws noted in the 2016 Credit Point System based New Recruitment Rules introduced for NITs: These rules do not prioritise the merit of the candidate and does not include schemes to attract meritorious candidates.Absence of uniform Recruitment Rules for IITs and IISERs.Certain institutes place undue weightage on the institution in which the candidate studied: As the primary focus is not placed on PhD research (evidenced by papers in high impact factor journals, patent and citations), meritorious candidates with better quality PhDs stand to lose. This, it has been submitted, is a violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution as well.Publication in high impact journals: IITs, NITs and IISERs do not give sufficient incentive for candidates to undertake research worthy to be published in such journals.Allowing arbitrary age limits to take precedence over merit and experience: It has been noted whereas NITs consider candidates up to 60 years for Assistant Professor posts, the age limit followed for such appointments in IITs and IISERs is 35 years. This serves to exclude high profile candidates, with years of experience. On the other hand, certain IITs recruit retired professors. Meritorious candidates between the age of 36-45 get excluded from the system thereby.Observed reluctance in filling up existent vacancies despite the availability of meritorious candidates (particularly with respect to OBC-reserved vacancies): It has been submitted that about 40% of faculty positions across such institutes remain in need of urgent appointments.Lack of transparency in the procedure followed for short listing of candidates: Undue emphasis on interviews of final-stage candidates enabling corruption and favouritism to take precedence in faculty appointment..In turn the present system has obstructed the advancement of these institutions. In this regard, Menon also alluded to the fact that no Indian University figured in the recent World Higher Educational Rankings 2016-2017..It has been pointed out,.“…it is better to implement transparent recruitment processes for teaching and non-teaching positions in all central institutes including NITs/IITs/IISERs. Otherwise, illegal appointments and violations and errors in the Faculty recruitment process will continue, unabated.”. On the other hand,.“the Implementation of uniform and Transparent Recruitment processes and procedures based on the overall merits of the candidates for Faculty positions, free of bias and prejudices, in NITs/IITs /IISERs would lead to a ‘win-win’ situation to all because the outstanding candidates would be able to get faculty positions and simultaneously the huge shortage of faculty in the above institutions would come down.”.In the petition, it has also been submitted that a representation dated July 30, 2017 had been sent to the Union Department of Higher Education, highlighting these issues and asking for appropriate resolution. In a response dated August 14, it was countered that there is a robust system currently in place which includes the participation of experts for faculty appointments in such institutions..Menon maintains that he disagrees with this stance given the lack of transparency, non-uniform selection criteria among the institutes and the presence of favouritism, bias and irregularities in the recruitment processes..For these reasons, Menon has prayed that the Court direct the constitution of an independent body of experts so that a comprehensive, objective study can be undertaken to find solutions to the various problems noted..The Court has ordered notice and posted the matter for October 13..Read copy of petition below.