In a move aimed at addressing the long-standing faculty shortage in state-run universities, the Maharashtra government has announced a revised set of recruitment rules to ensure greater transparency and standardisation in hiring processes. Under the revised rules, the weightage given to interview performance has been reduced from 40 percent to 25 percent. A majority 75% weightage will now be given to academic, teaching, and research credentials (ATR), which include qualifications, teaching experience, published work and innovation. Applicants must score over 50 out of 75 in the ATR evaluation to qualify for the interview stage. In the aftermath of significant drop experienced by state universities in recently declared National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF) results, higher and technical education minister Chandrakant Patil on Monday approved the new guidelines. A Government Resolution (GR) was issued shortly after the announcement. This is now expected to start the long-pending faculty recruitment at the state-run universities and affiliated colleges. For assistant professor appointments, marks on academic record will be based on institution where the degree was obtained. With maximum marks kept as 55, graduates from IITs, IIMs, IISERs, NITs and top 200 global universities will earn full marks. Whereas graduates from lower-ranked or UGC-approved institutions will receive proportionally lower scores. For example, those from central or state universities having NIRF rank within top 100 and world university rank within 200 will get 90 percent of total marks and those from institutes ranked between 200-500 in world university ranking or and other state-central university will get 80 percent of total marks. Along with faculty, recruitment rules for key university officials-such as registrar, finance officer, and various directors-have also been streamlined. These posts will be filled using a 100-mark system, with 50 marks allocated to educational qualifications. Interviews will include candidate presentations, and proceedings will be video recorded, with sealed records retained for legal scrutiny if required. Welcoming the move, Dr Vijay Pawar, president of the Maharashtra Union of Secular Teachers (MUST), said, “The decision to reduce weightage given to the interview stage is really welcoming because otherwise it would lead to instances of corruption. Now with more weightage to academic qualification, teaching and research credentials, the deserving candidates will be ahead in marks.” Pawar, however, pointed out that the GR does not specify whether these rules are only for state universities or also applicable for affiliated colleges. “The state should clear this ambiguity as faculty shortage is more in affiliated colleges,” he said.
