Close to 3,000 students studying in a college in Khutauna town of Madubani district, Bihar are being taught by only two teachers as against the sanctioned strength of 24 teachers.
Chethru Mahto Janta Mahavidyala (CMJ) college, opened in June 1969, is situated in Madhubani district of Bihar and is the only college for students studying in the area that borders Nepal. The college is accredited to Lalit Narayan Mithila University (LNMU), Darbhanga.
Syed Mumtazuddin, the Pro Vice-Chancellor of LNMU, confirmed that there was a massive shortage of teachers in CMJ college and stated that the condition in other 67 colleges that are accredited to LNMU are facing the same problem. “There is a severe shortage of teachers and this is not just the case with CMJ, but with almost all the colleges that are affiliated with us. We have arranged some teachers who will be sent to CMJ. The recruitment of teachers, which is done by the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSS), has not happened for a long time, resulting in this shortage,” he said. While responding to a notice sent last month by the Bihar Human Rights Commission (BHRC) on the shortage of teachers in colleges, the deputy director of higher education, Bihar government, stated that out of total sanctioned posts of 7103 teachers in the state, 3312 were vacant.
The state government also told the BHRC that these vacancies were referred to BPSC in May 2014 so that recruitment could be done. But in the last two years, only 49 teachers were recruited and the process of selecting candidates for the remaining 3263 candidates was going on and it will not get completed before early 2018.
The BHRC later passed a stinging observation stating that the authorities responsible were not doing their job as a result of which thousands of students, who are mostly from the poor and weaker sections of the society, were suffering. “This is a sorry state of affairs that cannot be explained in words. The state cannot play with the future of these students. This Commission could not find the way which it could suggest to the government so that the posts are filled-up immediately,” stated the commission.
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