Common recruitment test for all varsities

 Common recruitment test for all varsities

Yuvraj Akula

Hyderabad

For the first time, recruitment to teaching posts in all universities in the State will be done through a common recruitment test. The posts of assistant professor in the universities will be filled through a common recruitment test which will be followed by interviews.

While a decision has been taken to hold a common recruitment test, the government will soon take a call on who will conduct it. Entrusting the conduct of the recruitment test to the Telangana State Public Service Commission or setting up a separate entity are two options before the government.

Based on the merit secured in the test, candidates through the way of web options will be asked for their university preference. Upon exercising web options, the aspirants have to appear for the interview before the respective university board. For changing the recruitment rules, the government has to amend the respective Universities Act which might be done in the upcoming Assembly Budget session, officials said.

As per existing rules, the universities, being autonomous bodies, hold their own recruitment to the teaching staff after receiving approval from the government. Without a screening test, candidates are directly interviewed and based on the merit they are shortlisted for recruitment by an expert committee. (SEE PAGE 2)

However, this process of the universities got into legal problems on several occasions in the past. The proposed process might speed up the recruitment besides avoiding legal hurdles. It may be noted here that the government had already permitted recruitment to 1,061 teaching posts in the universities, including Osmania University, Kakatiya University, Mahatma Gandhi University, Palamuru University, Satavahana University, Telangana University, Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies, Dr BR Ambedkar Open University, Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University, Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University, and Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University-Hyderabad. Of these, the OU has a major share with 415 posts, including 294 assistant professors and 121 associate professor cadre. However, there were no posts for recruitment to the professor cadre. Meanwhile, Education Minister P Sabitha Indra Reddy is holding a meeting on Wednesday with V-Cs and Registrars of all State universities and recruitment is among the agenda.