KARACHI, Sept 21: The Sindh education department has received about 15,000 applications for appointments against 752 posts of college lecturers on contract basis, said sources in the department.

The appointments on a three-year contract are aimed at overcoming the shortage of teachers at colleges across the province on emergency basis. Keeping in view the urgency, the prescribed procedure of recruitments through the Sindh Public Service Commission has been set aside for the time being, added the source.

It is learnt that the urban/rural quota of 40:60 would, however, be maintained with regard to the appointments of lecturers in grade-17. A selected candidate would be entitled to salary and other perks equivalent to the package offered to a permanent college lecturer.

The appointment process would involve a written test and interview during which the department would ensure criteria of transparency and merit, said a senior official in the department.

A comprehensive mechanism for the process would be evolved and made public soon, the official added.

Though authorities in the provincial education ministry support the idea, certain quarters have been opposing it contending that bypassing the SPSC in the recruitment process would open a Pandora’s box and that another lot of incompetent staff would be pumped into the academic realm under political expediencies.

The officials are of the view that contract system is acceptable to the World Bank which, according to them, is playing a major role in reforming the educational sector in the country.

The written tests, for which a date is to be fixed after consultation with the private college supposed to conduct the test, would be held at three centres — Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur. About 3,500 applications have been received at Karachi for about 500 posts, said an official.

The maximum number of posts (100) under the contract system has been carved for the subject of English, followed by Commerce (92), Computer Science (69), Chemistry (59), Pakistan Studies (51), Physics (50 and Mathematics (50).

Sources privy to the ground work for contractual employment, have been expressing apprehension that the whole process could be delayed for a considerable period of time as the authorities concerned are reviewing the proposed procedures and formation of interview committees in order to escape criticizm and ensure transparency amid possibility of pressure from political quarters.