AIIMS faculty up in arms over quota-job ad

While the institute maintains that the step is to fill up the backlog of vacancies for reserved category candidates, resident doctors and faculty members say the vacancies advertised are only for SC/ST and OBC candidates. The step thus makes it 100 per cent reservation for the posts advertised, they contend.

8220;Even if this is a special recruitment drive only for reserved category candidates, all vacancies in the institute cannot be included in this,8221; AIIMS faculty association president Dr Binod Khaitan said.

AIIMS faculty members now plan to move the court over the issue. 8220;This is ridiculous,8221; Dr Khaitan said. 8220;How can reservation be applicable with a backlog when the institute hired SC/ST and OBC candidates in the past also through floating system? Another problem is that a Supreme Court order has forbidden reservation in specialty and super-specialty branches of medicine but in this case those seats have also been advertised only for SC/ST and OBC candidates.8221;

Dr R C Deka, Dean, AIIMS, meanwhile said, 8220;I have not seen the advertisement, and I do not have any idea about the details.8221;

But the faculty association said that specialty and super-specialty branches such as cardiothoracic surgery, neurosurgery and others, which as per Supreme Court order are not open for recruitment through reservation, have been advertised.

Though the advertisement mentions that all recruitments will be only for temporary faculty posts, subject to outcome of the case in the apex court, the faculty association maintains that recruitment process is flawed considering that the matter is still in court. 8220;In court, AIIMS authorities have given an affidavit saying recruitments only at the level of associate professor would be open for reserved category applicants. Then how can they advertise all posts for reserved category candidates?8221; Dr Kumar Harsh, president of AIIMS Resident Doctors8217; Association, asked.