Written test proposed for asst professor recruitment; upper age limit likely 45 yrs

Patna: With the draft statute framed by an eight-member committee of the Lok Bhavan and presently under review of the vice-chancellors (VC) of all the universities, the appointment of assistant professors in the institutions of higher education in Bihar is likely to undergo a significant change soon.All the aspirants irrespective of their NET qualification or Ph D degree will now have to take the state-level written test followed by interview, if they are thinking of joining a college or university in the state. And, candidates above 45 years won’t be eligible to apply for the teaching job, according to the draft statue. Earlier, the maximum age limit for assistant professors was 55 years. The minimum age limit is 23 years.According to the provisions made in the draft statute, the written test will be of 160 marks followed by an interview of 40 marks. The total marks on the written test and interview will be 200. The qualifying marks in the test will be 50%, with a relaxation of 5% for the reserved category candidates as per state govt regulations, said a member of the statute committee.VCs of all universities have been asked to review the proposal and submit their suggestions, if any, latest by March 11.

The chancellor’s secretariat has issued directions seeking feedback on the draft statute from the VCs.The draft statute has also been sent to the state govt and the State Council for Higher Education for comments under the provisions of the Bihar State University Act, 1976 (updated and amended) and the Patna University Act, 1976. If no suggestions are received within the deadline, it will be assumed that the authorities concerned agree with the proposed statute, said Lok Bhavan officials.According to the provisions made in the draft statute, the Bihar State University Service Commission (BSUSC) will conduct the entire recruitment process, including the written test. Candidates will first appear at the written examination, and only those who qualify the test by securing at least 50% marks, will be called for the interview.Sources said the BSUSC may advertise the vacancies of nearly 5,000 assistant professors, soon after the approval of the revised statute.

The state education department has already asked all the conventional universities of the state to furnish the complete list of vacant posts of teachers in different subjects after clearing the reservation roster from the competent authority. Some universities have furnished the vacancies and the remaining ones are busy calculating their subject-wise vacancies and getting the reservation roster in these vacancies cleared, said higher education director N K Agrawal.The BSUSC had advertised as many as 4,638 posts of assistant professors in 52 subjects in 13 conventional universities of the state in Sept 2020. The appointments in almost all the appointments have been completed except in four subjects where they are stuck due to litigation, said BSUSC chairman G K Chaudhary.