Morung Express News
Kohima | November 12
A total of 145 fixed-pay Assistant Professors are currently serving alongside 491 regular Assistant Professors in 15 government colleges across Nagaland, the state informed the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench (GHCKB).
In addition, in two Colleges of Teacher Education, there are 33 regular Assistant Professors and 5 fixed-pay Assistant Professors, highlighted submission made by Nagaland’s Government Advocate during the hearing of a batch of petitions challenging the appointment of contract faculty.
The Government Advocate also maintained that any vacant sanctioned posts have been requisitioned through the Nagaland Public Service Commission (NPSC).
The fixed-pay Assistant Professors have been retained on an exigency basis due to a shortage of teachers in almost all government colleges, the court was told.
To justify, the Government Advocate pointed out that for colleges permanently affiliated to Nagaland University, the Nagaland University Regulations 2021 mandate staffing requirements for introducing postgraduate programmes.
Under Regulation 12A, at least 10 teachers are required for the Science stream (5 for UG and 5 for PG), and at least 8 teachers for other streams (4 for UG and 4 for PG), it was submitted.
The court was also informed that these requirements were met by appointing private respondents on a fixed-pay basis and their remuneration is classified as wages, not salary, and does not fall under UGC regulations or state service rules.
The Government Advocate further submitted that all sanctioned posts of Assistant Professors have already been requisitioned and advertised between 2013 and 2022, and no fresh advertisement can be issued at present as the private respondents do not occupy sanctioned posts.
The GHCKB on November 12 dismissed a batch of writ petitions challenging the contractual appointment of Assistant Professors in government colleges across Nagaland, holding that the petitions were not maintainable on technical grounds.
While dismissing the petitions, however, the Court expressed concern over the State’s reliance on ad hoc and fixed-pay faculty, urging the Nagaland Government to create sanctioned teaching posts and fill them through a transparent recruitment process.
