AIIMS-Patna cancels previous ads, issues fresh ones for 173 vacant posts

As many as 43 posts of professor, 36 of additional professor and 47 each of associate professor and assistant professor were among the positions advertised afresh, accounting for all backlog vacancies

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna, advertised afresh for 173 faculty positions against its 305 sanctioned posts, according to a recruitment advertisement posted on its website on August 5.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna, has advertised afresh for 173 faculty positions against its 305 sanctioned posts, according to a recruitment advertisement posted on its website. (HT PHOTO.)

It also cancelled the two earlier faculty recruitment advertisements of October 18, 2021 and February 18 this year for grave administrative lapses.

“The earlier advertisements did not follow the reservation roster and recruitment rules. Besides, some positions were downgraded, without citing valid reasons,” said a senior functionary familiar with the development.

As many as 43 posts of professor, 36 of additional professor and 47 each of associate professor and assistant professor were among the positions advertised afresh, accounting for all backlog vacancies.

“We have fixed the deficiencies in the earlier advertisements and taken into consideration the reservation roster for the new AIIMS, as decided by the Nagarkar committee,” said Dr GK Pal, who joined as the executive director of AIIMS-Patna on July 3.

He, however, refused to go into the deficiencies of the earlier advertisements.

“We have strictly implemented the Nagarkar committee recommendations while issuing advertisements for faculty recruitment this time,” he said.

“We are the first to issue rolling advertisement for full-length faculty recruitment across all the disciplines, which include specialty and superspecialty departments,” added Dr Pal.

Rolling advertisement means that faculty recruitment will be an ongoing process throughout the year and the institute will keep updating its vacancies as against its sanctioned posts.

The opening date of online applications is August 20. September 19 is the first cut-off date for applications and December 31 the second cut-off date.

“We expect to complete the scrutiny of application in September. By October, we expect to complete the faculty interview and have the new faculties in place by November this year,” said Dr Pal.

The AIIMS had inappropriately downgraded some faculty positions while issuing the earlier advertisements. This meant that senior faculty positions, say for instance, a professor’s post, was not advertised despite vacancy. Instead, a lower position, at the level of associate or assistant professor, was advertised.

Many faculty members, including those from paediatrics, ophthalmology, orthopaedics and pulmonary medicine, who had the requisite experience and were eligible for lateral entry to the next higher position, had objected after some vacant sanctioned positions were not advertised.

Despite vacancies, the post of professor was not advertised in some departments like cardio-thoracic vascular surgery, burn and plastic surgery, ear nose and throat (ENT), paediatrics, trauma and emergency (emergency medicine), said a senior officer.

In some departments like the pulmonary medicine, the eligibility criteria for professor’s post was upgraded to DM, a postdoctoral degree in medicine in the superspecialty subject concerned, while selectively ignoring a few other departments, to benefit a handful existing faculty members, the officer quoted above said.

“This time, we have strictly followed the recruitment rules of AIIMS-Delhi, which is the mother institute for all new AIIMS,” said a senior functionary privy to the recruitment process.

“Rules allow downgrading a post only when suitable candidates are not available for the higher post, after advertising them. In such circumstances, the authorities have to take clearance either from the central institute body or the president of the institute. No such procedure was followed earlier at AIIMS-Patna,” the functionary added.

The institute had advertised for 158 faculty positions in October 2021 and for 11 positions in February this year.