AP to fill vacancies in varsities within 3 months

Amaravati: Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh has declared that the State government will fill 3,371 vacant faculty positions in universities across Andhra Pradesh within the next three months on a war-footing.

Responding to a question raised by MLC Borra Gopimurthy in the Legislative Council regarding the number of vacant teaching posts and the timeline for faculty recruitment, the Minister said that there are currently 3,371 vacancies in universities across the state. He assured members that the government would resolve pending legal cases in the High Court and take steps to complete the recruitment process within three months. Lokesh explained that recruitment notifications were previously issued in 2018 and 2023. However, the 2023 notification was struck down by the High Court for failure to properly implement vertical and horizontal reservations, leading to the suspension of the recruitment process. He said the state government has held three meetings with the Advocate General to thoroughly discuss the issue and has now decided to issue a fresh notification.

The Minister also stated that a manpower audit is necessary, as certain appointments made during the previous government were influenced by political considerations. The audit will help determine the actual staffing requirements in universities. Regarding contract employees, Lokesh said the government is obtaining legal opinion on granting weightage, ensuring no legal complications arise. He reiterated the state government’s commitment to reforms in higher education and strengthening of commissionerates. Recruitment is being taken very seriously and will becompleted as promised, he underlined.