Only 13 of 32 Associate Professor positions filled; H&ME Dept assures recruitment
Jahangeer Ganaie
Srinagar, Oct 30 :
The Health and Medical Education (H&ME) Department on Thursday said that approximately 50 per cent of posts at Government Medical College (GMC) Rajouri remain vacant. Specifically, out of 32 sanctioned associate professor positions, only 13 are currently filled, it added.
Responding to MLA Iftikar Ahmad’s query, Health Minister Sakeena Itoo, as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), stated in a written reply that GMC Rajouri has a sanctioned strength of 32 associate professor posts, with 13 occupied. She said the institution follows a three-tier faculty structure comprising Assistant Professors, Associate Professors, and Professors, with no sanctioned Lecturer posts.
The department said there is a sanctioned strength of 270 doctors, including Professors, Associate Professors, SR/Registrars, Demonstrators, Tutors, Casualty Medical Officers, and Lady Medical Officers. Currently, 140 of these positions are filled. For paramedical staff, including nursing and paramedical personnel, out of 244 sanctioned posts, 182 are occupied.
Recruitment for Consultants and Medical Officers is actively underway, with proposals being referred to the J&K Public Service Commission. The H&ME Department said there are 292 vacancies in the non-gazetted paramedical category from the Directorate of Family Welfare, MCH & Immunisation, and 290 from the Directorate of Health Services, Jammu, have been referred to the J&K Services Selection Board. These steps aim to improve staffing at peripheral healthcare facilities, it said.
The department said it had earlier proposed establishing a 3 Tesla MRI facility at GMC Rajouri, estimated to cost Rs 25 crore under the Machinery and Equipment budget. This proposal has been communicated to the Managing Director of JKMSCL for procurement and installation.
However, it has now been learned that GMC Rajouri is included under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram (PMJVK) Scheme for installing a 1.5 Tesla MRI unit, along with other advanced diagnostic equipment. To avoid duplication and optimise resource utilisation, the department proposes that the MRI facility initially planned for GMC Rajouri be instead procured for GMC Doda, which is also covered under the PMJVK Scheme. This rationalisation, the Health Minister said, aims to prevent unnecessary expenditure and allow funds to be allocated to other urgent medical infrastructure needs in Jammu and Kashmir.
Regarding ambulance services, GMC Rajouri currently operates a fleet of six ambulances, including one Critical Care Ambulance under the 108 Emergency Response System equipped with advanced life-support facilities, and one Basic Life Support ambulance stationed at PHC Manjakote for routine and emergency patient transport, the minister said.
On the infrastructure front, the department said it plans to establish a Cath Lab at GMC Rajouri at an estimated cost of Rs 12.50 crore in the 2025-26 financial year. Rs 9.375 crore has already been released to JKMSCL for this purpose. The Cath Lab will enhance cardiology and emergency care, reducing the need for patients to be referred to tertiary centres in Jammu and Srinagar, the minister added—(KNO)