Senior Faculty Vacancies Disrupt Academic Training, Burden Junior Doctors
Hyderabad:
Junior resident doctors across Telangana have expressed deep concern over a crippling shortage of senior teaching faculty in several leading government medical colleges, including Osmania Medical College, Gandhi Medical College, and Kakatiya Medical College.
According to the Telangana Junior Doctors Association (TGJUDA), the lack of qualified professors and associate professors is severely affecting postgraduate medical training, while also forcing junior residents to assume undergraduate teaching responsibilities. In some departments, there is not even a single senior faculty member, raising serious concerns over the quality of clinical education.
50% Faculty Shortage in Key Institutions
Dr Kommu Rahul, President of TGJUDA and a resident at Osmania Medical College, highlighted that nearly 50% of faculty posts remain vacant across various pre-clinical, para-clinical, and clinical departments. Departments like forensic medicine and radiology, which require senior-level academic mentorship, are operating with contractual staff or no professors at all.
“The number of government medical colleges has expanded significantly in recent years. Faculty from central colleges like Osmania, Gandhi, and Kakatiya have been transferred to peripheral institutions in Jogulamba Gadwal, Narayanpet, and others. However, delays in backfilling these positions have led to a dire teaching vacuum,” said Dr Rahul.
NMC Norms Violated, Training Standards at Risk
As per the National Medical Council (NMC) guidelines, each department must include at least one professor, associate professor, and assistant professor. But top colleges in Telangana, each with 250 MBBS seats and numerous PG positions, are failing to meet these basic faculty requirements.
Despite sanctioned posts, no recruitment or transfer orders have been issued to fill these crucial vacancies. This, doctors say, threatens the academic foundation and clinical exposure of upcoming medical professionals.
Call for Immediate Transfers and Faculty Appointments
Both TGJUDA and the Telangana Government Doctors Association (TGDA) have urged the state government to lift the existing faculty transfer ban and immediately appoint eligible doctors to senior positions. They warn that failure to act will have long-term consequences for the state’s healthcare infrastructure and the quality of patient care.
