‘Additional Charge Culture’ hits functioning of KU
Stakeholders appeal LG to get all posts filled through proper advertisements
Muhammad Adnan
Srinagar: Administrative inertia is the order of the day at the Kashmir University (KU) where more than half a dozen officials are holding additional charge of important departments, insiders have alleged.
This is in addition to their teaching and research assignments which has allegedly become a casualty due to the additional charge syndrome, they added.
Sources told ‘Kashmir Vision’ that besides the problem of additional charge, several important administrative posts are vacant for a long time and the University authorities are dragging their feet to fill them through proper advertisement allegedly to favour the incumbent officials holding these posts on temporary basis.
Sources said the post of Registrar is not being filled up through proper channel by putting the post to advertisement.
This is despite the fact that the term of present Registrar has ended more than eight months ago.
Documents accessed by ‘Kashmir Vision’ reveal that Raj Bhawan which is the office of Chancellor KU had directed former Kashmir University VC Dr Talat that the present Registrar shall continue only till the new VC assumes the charge.
Insiders in the University have alleged that there was no order made public for continuation of Registrar after the new VC Dr. Neelofar Khan took charge of the University on May 20 this year.
“Raj Bhawan had in November last year directed all universities to fill up posts of Registrar through proper channel. In case of KU, the post hasn’t been filled up despite repeated demands of stakeholders to do away with temporary arrangement of Registrar which is hampering smooth functioning of the University,” the sources said.
Much to the surprise of many, the Registrar is holding the additional charge of Director Convocation Complex and Director State Resource Centre against the University’s own ‘One Man One Post policy’.
“The post of Director Convocation Complex is also not put to advertisement and filled through proper channel,” said the KU insiders, adding that posts of Director North Campus and Director Information Technology are also not being filled up through proper channel allegedly to favour the incumbents in violation of rules.
“The charge of Director IT has been held by one Scientist for the last six years without even a single rotation as per the three year rotation policy of the University for all HOD’s. This post is not filled up despite many requests to VC that it should be advertised so that there is no monopoly of one person in the Directorate of Information Technology,” the sources said. The alleged data breach in the University recently raised questions over the continuation of in-charge IT Director for six long years.
Moreover, sources said there are many examples of officials holding additional charge in the University. One Assistant Professor of Linguistics Department is holding additional charge of Coordinator NSS and Director Sports Department, much to the shock of many university insiders who allege favouritism in the instant case.
“How can one person do justice to his teaching and research when he is given additional charge of two important units of the University?” asked a university teacher.
“In such a scenario, it becomes impossible for such an individual to do justice with any of the assignments. Students and research scholars suffer the most in the process when they are not attended to regularly.”
As per orders, Head Department of Sociology is holding additional charge of Dean Student’s Welfare while-as Head Department of Hindi is holding additional charge of Provost Girls Hostels. Dean Research is also holding additional charge of Dean Faculty of Social Sciences.
The stakeholders have demanded end to this “additional charge culture” which is hampering smooth functioning of the University.
“We appeal to LG Manoj Sinha to get all administrative posts filled up through proper advertisement immediately so that students and research scholars do not suffer for want of teachers who are given these additional charges,” they said.
Stakeholders have demanded a fair and transparent recruitment process where none of the applicants for these posts has any advantage or edge of being selected on the basis of being the incumbent official holding such a post at present.
“A level playing field should be given to all so that no questions are raised over the recruitment process,” the stakeholders said.
Citing one past example, they said one of the administrators in KU who applied for the post of VC earlier this year was removed by Raj Bhawan as Member Secretary of the Search Committee after it surfaced that he had issued the advertisement notice under his signatures and then himself applied for the post.
KV News
