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Why is JNTUH discriminating against MCA-Phds?
Does the university have overriding powers on AICTE norms?
Hyderabad: Are candidates with MCA and PhD qualifications facing discrimination in faculty appointments at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad (JNTUH) compared to their peers? Additionally, does the committee established by JNTUH to ratify the qualifications of faculty in unaided private colleges affiliated with the university have the authority to override the qualification norms set by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)?
These questions have arisen due to repeated allegations of JNTUH failing to recognise the eligibility of MCA-PhD holders to teach Computer Science in private engineering colleges. This situation has caused college management to issue pink slips to these qualified individuals.
The AICTE has defined specific eligibility criteria for teaching faculty in technology institutions. According to a 2016 gazette notification, individuals with qualifications such as MCA, MSc in Mathematics, Physics, Electronics, Computer Science, and related fields, along with ME, MTech, or PhD in Computer Science or Information Technology, are eligible to teach Computer Science, Information Technology, and Engineering courses. The MSc in Electronic Science, ME in Electronics and Telecom Engineering, and MSc in IT holders are also qualified to teach in CSE programmes.
However, inconsistencies on the part of JNTUH in implementing these norms have created challenges, particularly for MCA holders with PhDs in Computer Science. Despite their extensive qualifications—often including over 25 years of teaching experience and expertise in Programming Languages, Data Structures, Algorithms, and Artificial Intelligence—these individuals are frequently overlooked for teaching positions in CSE and IT departments. In contrast, candidates with MSc (Mathematics, Physics, or Electronics) and MTech (Computer Science) qualifications are often favoured, even though the MCA curriculum provides a more comprehensive understanding of computer science.
Furthermore, despite AICTE’s attempts to address these issues through gazette notifications in 2018 and 2022, many qualified MCA-PhD holders continue to experience professional humiliation and inequitable treatment due to JNTUH’s discriminatory ratification policies regarding eligibility qualifications.
Curiously, JNTUH allows these candidates to be appointed as assistant professors; however, when it comes to promotions, it curiously states they do not qualify for the position of professor, despite having over 20 years of service, including roles as associate professors and research supervisors.
What’s more, interesting is that, for example, a student holding an MCA from the JNTUH or Osmania University affiliated colleges and acquired a PhD from a foreign university, and working as a professor there has been invited to roll out red carpets to give expert lectures on any branch of Computer Sciences and Information Technology. Why the universities are adopting such double standards remains a million-dollar question.
