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Candidates end 5-day long protest against lack of professor recruitment in Maharashtra

The protesters demand that all posts vacant up to March 2025 should be filled immediately with the government giving 100 per cent approval for the recruitment of posts

2 min readPuneOct 31, 2025 10:54 PM IST

Candidates had set up a tin shed outside the Directorate of Higher Education building in Pune to agitate

Candidates for the post of professor in Maharashtra have ended a protest against the lack of recruitment in the state on its fifth day. Candidates had set up a tin shed outside the Directorate of Higher Education building in Pune to agitate.

In July, the State Government had approved the recruitment of 5,012 assistant professors in grant-in-aid colleges.

However the process has not moved forward with the Higher and Technical Education Minister citing lack of funds. State universities and private aided colleges have a large professor vacancy due lack of recruitment in the past few years. For example, Savitribai Phule Pune University is suffering from acute faculty shortage with 62 per cent of all government-funded posts vacant.

The protest was being held by the Maharashtra New Professors Association led by President Dr Sandeep Pathrikar and Secretary Dr Maroti Deshmukh. Pathrikar told The Indian Express, “We are currently ending the protest as we had a word with the director and he has said he will set up a meeting with either the Education Minister or the Secretary. We have given them the time till February 1, 2026. If there is no development till that date we will continue our fast onto death.”

The protesters demand that all posts vacant up to March 2025 should be filled immediately with the government giving 100 per cent approval for the recruitment of posts like Assistant Professor, Librarian, and Laboratory Assistant. They also demanded that professors working on clock-hour basis (CHB) should be given a minimum honorarium of Rs 1500/ per hour for 11 months. Similarly contractual professors should be paid Rs. 90,000/ per month for a period of 11 months in a year. Experience from hourly basis work should be considered for permanent appointment.

The protestors also demanded a CID or SIT investigation over allegations of corruption and of filling up professorial posts, promotions and non-teaching posts without permission of the government.

Soham Shah

Soham Shah is a Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Pune. A journalism graduate with a background in fact-checking, he brings a meticulous and research-oriented approach to his current reporting. Professional Background Role: Correspondent coverig education and city affairs in Pune. Specialization: His primary beat is education, but he also maintains a strong focus on civic issues, public health, human rights, and state politics. Key Strength: Soham focuses on data-driven reporting on school and college education, government reports, and public infrastructure. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) His late 2025 work highlights a transition from education-centric reporting to hard-hitting investigative and human-rights stories: 1. Investigations & Governance "Express Impact: Mother's name now a must to download birth certificate from PMC site" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on a significant policy change by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) following his earlier reports on gender inclusivity in administrative documents. "44-Acre Mahar Land Controversy: In June, Pune official sought land eviction at Pawar son firm behest" (Nov 9, 2025): An investigative piece on real estate irregularities involving high-profile political families. 2. Education & Campus Life Faculty crisis at SPPU hits research, admin work: 62% of govt-sanctioned posts vacant, over 75% in many depts (Sept 12, 2025): An investigative piece on professor vacancies at Savitribai Phule Pune University. "Maharashtra’s controversial third language policy: Why National Curriculum Framework recommends a third language from Class 6" (July 2): This detailed piece unpacks reasons behind why the state's move to introduce a third language from class 1 was controversial. "Decline in number of schools, teachers in Maharashtra but student enrolment up: Report" (Jan 2025): Analyzing discrepancies in the state's education data despite rising student numbers. 3. Human Rights & Social Issues "Aanchal Mamidawar was brave after her family killed her boyfriend" (Dec 17, 2025): A deeply personal and hard-hitting opinion piece/column on the "crime of love" and honor killings in modern India. "'People disrespect the disabled': Meet the man who has become face of racist attacks on Indians" (Nov 29, 2025): A profile of a Pune resident with severe physical deformities who became the target of global online harassment, highlighting issues of disability and cyber-bullying. Signature Style Soham is known for his civil-liberties lens. His reporting frequently champions the rights of the marginalized—whether it's students fighting for campus democracy, victims of regressive social practices, or residents struggling with crumbling urban infrastructure (as seen in his "Breathless Pune" contributions). He is adept at linking hyper-local Pune issues to larger national conversations about law and liberty. X (Twitter): @SohamShah07 ... Read More

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