Cuttack: The Orissa high court has criticised the stop-gap arrangement of appointing assistant professors in state govt medical colleges on a contractual basis to meet National Medical Council (NMC) requirements.
These posts are typically filled through regular recruitment by Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC). However, pending such recruitment, the vacancies are being filled by contractual engagement or deputation of medical officers of the Odisha Medical and Health Service (OMHS) cadre for four years as an interim measure to fulfil NMC norms.
"The persistent practice of appointing contractual employees to positions such as assistant professor in medical institutions is unsustainable," Justice S K Panigrahi stated. "These posts must be filled up through regular appointments to ensure the integrity and stability of the academic and medical framework," Justice Panigrahi added in a Nov 22 judgement.
The court directed the state govt "to ensure that the OPSC initiates the recruitment process as expeditiously as possible for filling these positions with regular appointees, thereby addressing the prevailing culture of complacency and ad-hoc arrangements in public service".
The direction assumes significance as official reports indicate that there are more than 180 vacant assistant professor posts in different govt medical colleges in the state.
The court's remarks came while dismissing a petition filed by Dr Rakesh Kumar Ludam, an OMHS cadre medical officer. Ludam was deputed as an assistant professor in the department of anesthesiology at MKCG Medical College, Berhampur, for four years starting Jan 31, 2020. His deputation ended on Jan 30, 2024, with the govt initiating fresh recruitment to fill up the post.
Ludam challenged the termination of his deputation, arguing through his counsel, advocate Avijit Mishra, that a contractual employee cannot be replaced by another contractual appointee. However, Justice Panigrahi observed, "In service law, it is a well-established principle that a contractual employee cannot be terminated solely to appoint another contractual employee. However, this principle does not apply in the present case, as the petitioner was not terminated but sought to be repatriated to his parent cadre upon the conclusion of his deputation on Jan 30, 2024."
The judgment is likely to highlight recruitment delays and overreliance on contract staff in Odisha's medical colleges.