BHUBANESWAR: Although the state government has decided to start recruitment of Odia faculty in its educational institutions, the wait may be longer for public universities many of whom do not even have 50 per cent of teachers in the subject.
The state has 13 government-run universities, the latest addition being the Odia University which was opened a few months back. There are 81 sanctioned faculty posts in Odia in the 13 universities. The highest 12 posts are in Odia University.
Of these 81 posts, only 29 faculty members are in position. In Odia university, only seven faculty members are in position and they have all been deputed by the Higher Education department from different colleges across the state.
Similarly, in all the four new universities - Manikeswari at Kalahandi, Rajendra at Balangir, Dharanidhar at Keonjhar and Vikram Dev at Jeypore (each having seven sanctioned posts in Odia) - there has been no appointment of faculty members yet. Instead, three each degree (UG) faculty members from the erstwhile Bhawanipatna autonomous college, Rajendra college and DD college are teaching students there. In Vikram Dev university, two UG faculty members of VD college have been roped in for the job.
In Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo university (MSCBU) at Baripada, the Odia department was operational at its second campus with six sanctioned faculty positions. However, after the second campus was shifted to Dharanidhar university at Keonjhar, no Odia department has been opened here.
While Rama Devi university is managing the entire department with just one faculty member against the requirement of six, Utkal has only two assistant professors and no professor and associate professor. The Fakir Mohan or North Odisha university has the lowest one vacancy in the subject. Research wise, the universities do not have much to offer in the subject.
Earlier this week, Culture Minister Ashwini Kumar Patra told the Assembly that the government has decided to post Odia teachers in 1,500 high schools in the initial phase and then cover the remaining schools in a time-bound manner.