Govt nod to hire own teachers

The three colleges under Sir Jamsetji Jeejibhoy (JJ), which were granted autonomous status by the state cabinet a few months ago, will ask the government for permission to hire their own teachers, instead of having to rely on the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) to make appointments. According to a source, the officials at the three schools — applied arts, fine arts and architecture — fear that the state recruiter will delay appointments to vacant teaching positions. They plan to ask the state to withdraw the government resolution (GR) announcing the autonomy, and issue a fresh GR that allows institutes to hire teaching staff. “We have no problem with the MPSC recruiting staff, but it hasn’t done that for a long time. As a result, nearly 60% of our teaching positions are vacant,” said the source.

An RTI query filed last year revealed that about 75% teaching positions were vacant. The insti tute is relying on its alumni and temporary teachers to finish the curriculum. The institute has appointed 15 teachers on an ad-hoc and contract basis, but 40% teaching positions are stil vacant. Officials had hoped that autonomy would allow them to not only frame their own curric ulum but also end their depend ence on the MPSC. However, the GR issued last month announced that the government would con tinue to make appointments on the institutes’ behalf.