Reserved faculty posts are still vacant and out of reach, Pg8

Context: 

• Despite constitutional mandates for social justice and reservation in public institutions, central universities and elite institutions in India consistently fail to fill faculty posts reserved for SCs, STs, and OBCs, reflecting systemic exclusion and resistance to inclusivity.

Key Highlights:

• India mandates faculty reservation quotas: 15% for SCs, 7.5% for STs, 27% for OBCs, and 10% for EWS.
• As of 2021, there were over 7,800 reserved post vacancies in 45 central universities.
• UGC’s 2023 report notes 30% of reserved teaching posts remain unfilled.
• Vacancies are particularly high in senior academic roles (associate professors, professors).
• Selection processes and institutional autonomy often subvert reservation goals.
• 13-point roster system (2018) diluted reservation implementation compared to the earlier 200-point system.

Detailed Insights: 

• Despite targeted recruitment drives, reserved faculty positions in central universities like JNU and University of Delhi remain largely unfilled.
• Senior academic roles such as associate professors and professors show disproportionately high vacancy rates for SCs, STs, and OBCs.
• Central universities and institutes of national importance operate with significant autonomy, limiting government oversight in enforcing reservation mandates.
• Selection committees are often dominated by individuals from dominant social groups, leading to a lack of urgency in fulfilling the social justice mandate.
• The 13-point roster system introduced in 2018 treats individual departments as units for reservation, reducing chances of SC/ST/OBC representation, especially in small departments.
• Under the 13-point roster, a department must have at least 14 posts before all reservation categories are implemented, marginalising smaller disciplines.
• Many qualified candidates from reserved categories are rejected with vague justifications such as “not found suitable”, contributing to the persistence of vacancies.
• A 2022 study by the Ambedkar University Faculty Association found that over 60% of vacancies in reserved posts were due to discretionary rejections.
• Informal practices such as appointments influenced by political affiliations or ideological alignment compromise transparency in academic hiring.
• Public institutions often lack standardised evaluation criteria, creating space for subjective and biased decisions during faculty selection.
• While the public sector (e.g. railways, banks) often meets reservation targets at Group C and D levels, higher education lags in social inclusivity.
• A persistent gap exists between the rhetoric of social justice from successive governments and actual implementation on the ground.

Way Forward

• Restore institution-wide roster (200-point system) to improve SC/ST/OBC representation.
• Ensure mandatory compliance audits, with penalties for non-enforcement of reservation.
• Standardise and make transparent the selection criteria for all faculty appointments.
• Diversify selection committees and introduce social justice sensitisation training.
• Build a database of qualified candidates from marginalised groups for active recruitment.
• Encourage political will and administrative discipline to bridge the representation gap.
• NEP 2020’s inclusive framework must be reflected in real-time recruitment practices.

Key Concepts Involved: 

• Reservation Policy: Constitutional provisions under Articles 15(4), 16(4), and 46.
• Roster Systems: 200-point vs. 13-point systems—unit of application determines extent of inclusivity.