BENGALURU: India’s 23 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) collectively have a faculty shortage of 34% as of March 2018, with only one — IIT-Mandi in Himachal Pradesh — having more than the sanctioned strength.The problem is not restricted to newer IITs like those in Palakkad, Tirupati and Goa, which don’t have the sanctioned faculty, but also in older ones like those in Mumbai, Kharagpur and Kanpur where the shortage is between 25% and 45%.

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Last month, the Union Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry said it would try and make it easier for IITs to acquire visas for foreign faculty, hoping to narrow the gap between sanctioned and existing strength of teachers.‘Half of IIT graduates go abroad to find work’Education expert AS Seetharamu said: “Earlier, about 15% of IIT graduates would come back as faculty, but this percentage is dropping. Now, up to 50% of graduates go abroad to find work, while most of the remaining enter software and information technology companies in India.”With the increase in number of IITs and NITs, the teaching staff needed is increasing. “However, there has been no subsequent rise in the number of people eligible and available for these positions,” Seetharamu said, adding this gap can be plugged by increasing competitiveness of salaries and encouraging graduates to take up doctoral studies as PhDs are required of prospective faculty.While IIT-Mandi is in the best position with four faculty members more than the sanctioned strength, IIT-Bhilai, in Chhattisgarh is in the worst spot with 58% vacancies. Among the top five ranked IITs, Kharagpur has 46% vacancies, followed by 36% in Kanpur, 29% in Delhi, 28% in Chennai and 27% in Mumbai.Experts pointed out that in newer IITs like the one in Dharwad, which has a 47% shortage, the challenges are of attracting teachers to stay and teach in smaller towns. “Just putting up an educational institute isn’t enough. Faculty members have families and they weigh options like availability of schools for their children, access to healthcare and other factors,” an expert explained.Among other challenges facing the Union ministry for human resources development (HRD) are the attractive private sector, better research opportunities in multinational companies (MNCs) and the lack of quality candidates.