LARKANA, Oct 19: An inordinate delay in recruitment of faculty members and promotions through the departmental promotion committees (DPCs) is casting negative impact on educational activities in Chandka Medical College (CMC), Larkana, Nawabshah Medical College (NMC) and Ghulam Mohammed Mahar Medical College (GMMMC) in Sukkur.

About a couple of months ago, the principals of these colleges held a marathon meeting with the secretary health and discussed the shortage of teaching staff at the colleges.

Sources told this correspondent that in the meeting, a huge exercise of preparing a comprehensive list for the purpose was carried out.

And that very list, after the three principals deliberated and compiled, was dispatched to the Sindh health minister in August 2007.

According to the information, 113 seats of professors, associate professors, assistant professors and senior registrars are to be advertised and filled through the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) for the subjects of anatomy, physiology, bio-chemistry, pathology ophthalmology, anaesthesiology, histopathology, chemical pathology, microbiology, haematology, radiology, nephrology, cardiology, orthopaedics, ENT etc. in three medical colleges.

The sources said that a tussle between the Sindh governor and the chief minister over the affairs of the SPSC was main impediment in surrendering the seats for recruiting and subsequently filling 113 seats of professors, associate professors, assistant professors and senior registrars to be posted in the medical colleges in the interior of Sindh.

But the SPSC has not advertised for the posts since then, as the Sindh government has not surrendered such seats with it, the sources said. A combined advertisement was badly needed to overcome the situation, they argued.

Another issue is the promotion of teachers. The DPC-I, which was headed by Sindh chief minister, had not held its meeting to consider the promotion cases from grade 19 to 20 (associate to professor).

These 11 faculty members are eligible to be promoted in surgery, medicine, paediatrics, obstetrics, paediatrics’ surgery etc. from the rank of associate professor to professor and most of them are working on regular basis, the sources said.

This would open window for others to be elevated in one step promotions.

Similarly, the DPC-II, which the chief secretary of Sindh heads, had not met since long to take up the cases of 11 assistant professors working in grade 18 in the departments of pharmacology, neuro-surgery, forensic medicine, medicine, bio-chemistry, pathology etc. in the three medical colleges. They all are eligible and working on regular basis in CMC Larkana, NMC Nawabshah and GMMMC Sukkur.

At present three senior registrars working in ENT and radiology departments of CMC and NMC were awaiting promotion through DPC.