AIIMS: 1,285 Seats Remain Vacant Due to Tough Selection Process

The Union Ministry Of Health is having a tough time in filling 1,285 posts at six new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The Ministry is still not hopeful of getting appropriate candidates for the vacant posts and going by the last year trends, the seats are expected to remain vacant this year as well. As an immediate solution to the existing problem, the Institute has released a proposal to hire retired professors above the age of 70.

A total of 1,300 posts were advertised for the AIIMS at Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur, Patna, Raipur and Rishikesh. Out of the horde of applications received, only 300 were selected and only 200 finally joined. Showing his agony towards inflow of non-qualified aspirants, the Health Minister J P Nadda said- " We are not getting good people this time and we are rejecting around 40 people at a time"

Stringent Recruitment Process

The total turnout of applications has dropped down. Last year, each AIIMS received 600-800 applications on an average last year, which means only one in 14 applicants was found to be deserving and only two or three who were selected joined. The number has fallen down by around 50% with only 305 applications sanctioned this year. Bhopal has advertised 251 posts, Bhubaneswar 178, Jodhpur 204, Patna 253, Raipur 204 and Rishikesh 205. According Dr Sanjeev Misra (The Director), "AIIMS-Jodhpur advertised 200 posts, got 700-800 applications, and found only 70-odd good enough to hire. The response is very good, but we are clear we do not want to compromise on quality. That is why selection process is stringent. We are looking for excellence in teaching and research because if we do not set standards high, it will become like any other medical college. Institution-building takes time, even AIIMS-Delhi took 60 years to reach its present standards."

Responding on the proposal to hire professors on contract as faculty, a Health Ministry official said, "That way we may get good, competent people who have retired from institutes like AIIMS-New Delhi, and PGI-Chandigarh."

High Salaries at Private Institutions

The officials who are involved in the recruitment process at the Health Ministry and the AIIMS have said that there are couple of reasons behind this non-availability of qualified people for the vacant posts. While higher salary structures in the private sector is one of the major reasons for this minimalist inflow of applications, other is the lack of proper facilities in the centres where new AIIMS have come up.

A professor at an AIIMS gets around Rs. 2.12 lakh monthly salary including HRA and an additional professor is entitled to around Rs 1.91 lakh. On the other hand, in the private sector, a doctor can earn up to Rs 7-8 lakh, said the director of one of the six AIIMS.