Bengal govt starts recruitment of college principals, fixes min age at 40 years

KOLKATA: The Bengal government has started the process of filling the vacancies for principals’ posts at almost 80 government-aided colleges.
According to the advertisement that the College Service Commission published on May 10 for the recruitment of principals, those between 40 years and 55 years can apply for the post. The government has for the first time lowered the minimum age limit to 40 years.Going by the criteria laid down by the University Grants Commission in its 2018 guidelines, applicants should also have at least 10 research publications in peer-reviewed or UGC journals and a minimum research score of 110.
The last date of online application is June 10. Candidates can apply online only through the West Bengal College Service Commission portal. College Service Commission chairman Dipak Kar said, “Research score parameters will help judge an applicant’s excellence in academics. For the first time, the lower age limit has been fixed at 40 years. The head of an institution needs to be well experienced with clear knowledge to run college administration. The experience grows with age.”
Most of the vacant principals’ posts are in colleges affiliated to Kalyani University, Burdwan University and Vidyasagar University. In Kolkata, there are at least 10 colleges, where the posts are vacant. Last year, the West Bengal College Service Commission had filled up posts of principal at almost 100 colleges, which included several institutes affiliated to CU.
Earlier, the recruitment rule performance was examined on the basis of Academic Performance Index (API), where research excellence was a part. College Service Commission is the nodal agency to fill up the vacant posts.
In the absence of a principal, senior faculty members have been carrying out the roles of the heads of institutions as the teachers-in-charge. But their administrative powers are restricted, which hampers the daily functioning of the colleges. “Teachers-in-charge cannot take certain decisions pertaining to the expansion of infrastructure, hiring contractual teachers and writing to the university, seeking permission to teach new courses,” said a teacher-in-charge at a north Kolkata college.