New Delhi: Nearly a third of faculty posts are vacant at the 20 All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) across the country, the government has informed Parliament.
In response to a question by Murari Lal Meena, Lok Sabha MP from Dausa, minister of for health and family welfare Prataprao Jadhav said that 2,181 faculty posts, out of the 6.304 sanctioned, are lying vacant in the 20 premier medical colleges across India in 2026-27, as reported by The Indian Express.
As far as non-faculty posts are concerned, 15,159 of the 59,225 sanctioned, are lying vacant. This amounts for 25% vacancies.
It has been revealed in the reply that at AIIMS, New Delhi, 436 faculty posts remain vacant. This is out of a sanctioned strength of 1,313. As many as 2,461 non-faculty seats are vacant at the medical college, against a sanctioned strength of 13.913.
The minister, however, pointed to a bright side. Things have improved over the last three years. There has been an overall improvement across all the 20 AIIMS, with the vacancy rate of faculty positions declining from 39.22 per cent in 2023-24 to 34.6 per cent in 2026-27, it was mentioned.
Similarly, the vacancy rate among non-faculty positions has declined from 39.19 per cent in 2023-24 to 25.6 per cent in 2026-27.
“The creation of posts and recruitment is a continuous and dynamic process. Filling up of vacant faculty/non-faculty positions is contingent on various factors including availability of suitable/eligible/qualified doctors/health professionals, reservation roster, location of the Institute, etc,” the government has said.
According to the ministry, several measures have been taken to expeditiously fill vacant sanctioned positions, such as the constitution of a Standing Selection Committee in each Institute, as per the provisions of their respective Acts, for the selection of faculty.
Retired faculty are also being engaged at the levels of Professor, Additional Professor, and Associate Professor, on a contract basis, in the new AIIMS, up to the age of 70 years, from Institutes of National Importance (INIs) and Government Medical Colleges (GMCs).
The Visiting Faculty Scheme has been formulated to allow Professors, Additional Professors, and Associate Professors who hold academic positions in government institutions in India or in academic institutions outside India to serve as Visiting Faculty at the new AIIMS for teaching purposes.
