**Executive Summary**
The Ministry of Education addresses a question regarding vacant full-professor positions in State Public Universities, as highlighted in a NITI Aayog report. The response outlines that while State Governments are responsible for filling these vacancies, the UGC and the Ministry have issued advisories and letters, respectively, urging timely action. Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs) have been exhorted to fill vacancies in mission mode with successful filling of 29,979 posts till October 24, 2025.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Responsibilities and Governance:**
* Education is under the Concurrent List; both Central and State Governments can legislate.
* State Public Universities are governed by respective State Acts, including faculty appointments.
* The recruitment and filling of faculty positions in State Public Universities fall within the domain and responsibility of the respective State Governments.
* **Ministry and UGC Initiatives:**
* UGC issued an advisory on 20.02.2025, urging timely filling of vacant faculty positions in State Universities and affiliated colleges.
* The Ministry has written a letter on 28.10.2025 to State Education Secretaries to initiate recruitment for optimum teacher numbers.
* **Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs):**
* CHEIs are autonomous and governed by Central Acts, Statutes, and Regulations.
* Faculty recruitment is conducted by the institutions themselves, following relevant Acts and Regulations.
* The recruitment powers are vested with the respective Boards of Governors.
* The Ministry of Education exhorted all CHEIs to fill up the vacancies in Mission Mode.
* As of 24.10.2025, a total of 29,979 posts have been filled up by all CHEIs in Mission Mode, out of which 17,494 are faculty positions.
* **Vacancy Management:**
* Vacancies occur continuously due to promotion, retirement, resignation, death, new institutions, schemes, projects, and increased student strength.
* The CHEIs undertook special recruitment drives to fill the vacancies including of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).
**Impact Analysis**
**State Governments**
* **Impact:** Responsible for the recruitment and filling of faculty positions in State Public Universities.
* **Action Required:** Respond to the Ministry's letter and the UGC's advisory and initiate recruitment processes.
**Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs)**
* **Impact:** Expected to address vacancies in faculty positions through recruitment.
* **Action Required:** Continue Mission Mode recruitment drives to fill remaining vacancies and adhere to relevant Acts and Regulations.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Education: Union ministry responsible for education policies and initiatives, the primary subject of the document.
State Public Universities: Universities established and governed by state laws, focus of the quality improvement initiative.
NITI Aayog report “Expanding Quality Higher Education through States and State Public Universities”: The report that highlights the issue of vacant full-professor positions in State Public Universities.
Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs): Higher education institutions including IITs, IIITs, NITs, etc., under the Ministry of Education.
Mission Mode: Initiative to fill vacancies in CHEIs, including reserved categories (SC, ST, OBC, PwD).
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 423
ANSWERED ON- 02/02/2026
Expanding Quality Higher Education through States and State Public Universities
423. Shri Sukhdeo Bhagat:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) whether it is a fact that over fifty-six per cent of full-professor positions at State Public
Universities across the country are vacant, as per the NITI Aayog report “Expanding
Quality Higher Education through States and State Public Universities” in February, 2025;
and
(b) if so, the timeline fixed and action plan formulated by the Government to fill these
vacancies and thereby improve teaching quality and research output in the country?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR)
(a) & (b): Education is a subject under the Concurrent List of the Constitution of India,
wherein both the Central and State Governments are empowered to make laws. State
Public Universities are established under Acts of the respective State Legislatures, and
their administrative and service-related matters, including appointments of teaching faculty
are governed by the provisions of the concerned State Acts, Statutes, Rules and
Regulations. Recruitment and filling up of faculty positions in State Public Universities fall
within the domain and responsibility of the respective State Governments.
UGC has issued an advisory dated 20.02.2025 to all Additional Chief Secretaries/Principal
Secretaries/Secretaries (Education)/Secretaries to the Governor/State Higher Education
Councils of all States and Union Territories of India, requesting for their personal
intervention to ensure timely filling up of vacant faculty positions in the State Universities
and their affiliated colleges under their jurisdiction. Further, this Ministry has also written a
letter on 28.10.2025 to Education Secretaries of all State Governments to initiate
recruitment process for the appointment of the optimum number of teachers for the
allocated courses.
The Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs) under Ministry of Education including
Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs),
National Institute of Technology (NITs), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Indian Institute of
Science Education and Research (IISERs), Indian Institute of Management (IIMs), IndianInstitute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST), School of Planning and
Architecture (SPAs), Central Universities (CUs) etc. are statutory autonomous
organizations established under respective Central Acts of Parliament and governed by
provisions of the Acts/ Statutes/ Ordinances/ Regulations made thereunder. As
autonomous institutions, faculty recruitment is done within the institutions itself, in
accordance with their Acts and Regulations and in accordance with Central Educational
Institutions (Reservation in Teachers Cadre) Act, 2019 and the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities Act, 2016. The recruitment powers vest with the respective Board of Governors
(BoGs)/Executive Committee/Board of Management and no active role of the Ministry is
involved therein.
Occurring of vacancies and filling thereof is a continuous process. The vacancies arise
due to promotion, retirement, resignation, death, opening of new institutions, schemes or
projects, and additional requirements on account of enhanced students’ strength and
expansion of capacity in existing institutions.
Ministry of Education had exhorted all the CHEIs to fill up the vacancies in Mission Mode.
The CHEIs undertook special recruitment drives to fill the vacancies including of Scheduled
Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). From
September 2022, all CHEIs have undertaken Mission Mode recruitment drive to fill the
vacancies including those of SC, ST, OBC and PwD. Up to 24.10.2025 (i.e. the date of last
Rozgar Mela), a total number of 29,979 posts have been filled up by all CHEIs in Mission
Mode, out of which 17,494 are faculty positions.
****