50% lecturer posts vacant, govt neglecting education: MP Selja
MP Sirsa Kumari Selja has raised concerns over the serious shortage of lecturers in state government and recognised colleges, despite the state government’s plans to implement the New Education Policy.
She said around 50 per cent lecturer positions in these colleges were vacant, with many colleges relying on guest and extension lecturers to make up for the shortage.
Selja accused the government of neglecting education, claiming that such a shortage undermined the quality of education and forced young people to migrate to other states for higher education.
In a statement to the media, Selja said the state had 184 government colleges and 97 aided colleges, with a total of 7,986 lecturer positions approved. However, only 3,358 of these positions were filled by regular lecturers, while 2,058 are occupied by guest or extension lecturers.
A staggering 4,465 positions were vacant.
Moreover, 39 colleges do not even have principals, and there have been no replacement for retired faculty members, she said.
Selja highlighted specific vacancies in subjects like English, commerce, geography and mathematics, stating that there were a total of 749 vacancies in English alone.
This shortage affected the overall quality of education, forcing students to face numerous challenges, she added. Many young students were leaving the state to pursue higher education elsewhere, Selja said, describing this as a source of embarrassment for the government.
She said the government’s promise to establish a college for girls every 20 km had not been fulfilled, making it difficult for girls to access higher education. As a result of this, many girls had to drop out after high school, she added.
Selja urged the government to keep its promises and fill the vacant positions to prevent brain drain, and ensure that students, especially girls, had the opportunity to continue their education without any hindrances.
