Almost 7,000 SC, ST, OBC Posts Vacant in Central Universities: Ministry of Education

The education ministry revealed on Monday that a total of 6,988 teaching and non-teaching positions remain vacant in central universities across India. This information was shared by Sukanta Majumdar, the Minister of State for Education, in response to an unstarred question posed by Dharmendra Yadav, a member of parliament from the Samajwadi Party representing Badaun.

Almost 7,000 SC, ST, OBC Posts Vacant in CU: MoE

Breakdown of Vacancies:

Among these vacancies, a significant number are reserved for specific categories:

Scheduled Castes (SC): 2,202 positions
Scheduled Tribes (ST): 1,380 positions
Other Backward Classes (OBC): 3,406 positions

These vacancies include both teaching and non-teaching roles within the central universities. As of April 1, 2024, the detailed breakdown is as follows:

Scheduled Castes (SC):

Teaching: 736
Non-Teaching: 1,466

Scheduled Tribes (ST):

Teaching: 466
Non-Teaching: 914

Other Backward Classes (OBC):

Teaching: 1,446
Non-Teaching: 1,960

Efforts to Address the Vacancies:

Majumdar noted that until February 2024, a total of 6,049 vacancies had been filled across central universities (CUs), Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), and Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs). This includes the filling of 9,535 faculty positions under "mission mode," comprising:

Scheduled Castes (SC): 1,173 positions
Scheduled Tribes (ST): 517 positions
Other Backward Classes (OBC): 1,942 positions

Majumdar further added, "Through special recruitment drives, more than 9,650 positions (both teaching and non-teaching) have been filled, out of which 1,281 positions were filled by SC candidates, 634 by ST candidates, and 2,011 by OBC candidates."

Previous Year's Data:

As of April last year, there were still significant vacancies with 5,825 teaching and 15,390 non-teaching posts unfilled in central universities. A parliamentary panel had previously highlighted that the education ministry had around 27,000 vacancies across various higher education institutions, including IITs, IITs, IIMs, IISERs, and the Indian Institute of Science.
The data was shared in response to a question by Tanuj Punia from the Indian National Congress representing Barabanki constituency in Uttar Pradesh. The ongoing efforts aim to address these gaps through targeted recruitment drives.

The figures underscore the need for continued efforts to fill these critical positions to ensure the effective functioning of educational institutions across India. The Ministry of Education remains committed to addressing these vacancies through strategic recruitment initiatives, aiming to bolster the workforce in central universities and other higher education institutions.