After much delays, process on to fill up 10,000 health posts by month-end

As of November, 48,686 positions out of the approved 65,791 in the state health department have been filled, while 17,105 remain vacant. Additionally, there is a shortage of over 100 health officers, around 500 specialist doctors, and about 900 medical officers in category A.

In fact, at present, the two posts of directors are lying vacant for months now.

However, after much criticism and directives from the Bombay High Court, the state health department has started filling up the vacant posts, focusing on doctors in A and B, and other staff in C and D categories. A senior health officer from the ministry stated, “We aim to fill over 10,000 posts by the end of this month.”

The department is actively seeking candidates for two vacant health director positions but is facing challenges in finding eligible officers. One position must be filled internally, while the other requires Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) involvement. “We have written to MPSC about it. Meanwhile, the Medical Education Department and Central Health Institutions have been notified, but no positive response has been received so far,” added the officer.

Nonetheless, several health officers have emphasised that the health department has neglected promotions for years.

Therefore, it is essential to elevate senior staff to higher positions to address vacancies at the upper level before recruiting for lower posts. Commenting on this, the officer said, “The selection process for 350 promotional positions has also commenced through the departmental selection committee.”

Since March 2020, the Bombay High Court has criticised the state government and civic bodies for not addressing vacancies in government hospitals throughout Maharashtra. Last year in April, the Aurangabad bench, headed by Justice Ravindra V Ghuge, issued an ultimatum, mandating the Maharashtra government to fill substantial vacancies of professors, doctors, and other medical, nursing, or teaching staff at government medical colleges and hospitals state-wide by October 31.

Dr Abhay Shukla, national co-convenor of Jan Swasthya Abhiyan– a coalition of NGOs and health professionals, highlighted the state government’s plan to establish new medical colleges and hospitals, emphasising the critical shortage of manpower to operate them.

He said, “The recent mass deaths of patients in hospitals are evidence of the state’s inadequacy in delivering quality treatment. Hospitals lack essential life-saving equipment like CT scans and specialist doctors. There is a need for integration and filling up all the vacant posts.”