Prominent personalities in the field of medical education are concerned following reported efforts to appoint a faculty member from a private medical college as Vice-Chancellor (V-C) of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS), against the tradition of appointing only those from government institutions. These concerns have become serious ahead of a meeting of the screening committee to finalise the names of three probable candidates on Tuesday.
Sources said that this time efforts and lobbying were on to push the candidature of the principal of a private medical college.
Aspirants for the V-C’s post as well as prominent members of the sector have strongly opposed such efforts, while arguing that the responsibilities and the requirements of the post suit only those well-versed with government administration.
The tenure of M.K. Ramesh, who is the incumbent V-C of RGUHS, ended on February 10, 2025, and the Governor recently issued an order extending his tenure by six months.
The State government has already appointed a search committee to select an appropriate candidate for the post and over 30 people, including principals of government and private medical colleges, officials of the Medical Education Department, and directors of hospitals, have applied.
RGUHS was established in 1996 and as per tradition, till now, only principals, deans, and directors of various departments of government medical colleges, and directors of the Medical Education Department with experience in administration have been selected as the V-C.
The Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences Act, 1994, does not have any restrictions on appointing a person from a private medical institution as the V-C. However, considering the importance of the post, subsequent governments have stuck to the tradition of appointing only those from government institutions to this post.
In 2021, the Governor appointed the principal of a private dental college as the interim V-C of RGUHS. However, there was strong opposition across the State and the interim V-C stepped down.
In this context, the State government had tried to amend the Act during the recent legislature session in Belagavi. “However, the amendment was blocked at the level of officials and it was not tabled,” said sources.
“Persons from private institutions are also technically eligible for the post of RGUHS V-C as per the Act. However, their academic qualifications and administrative experience will be an important issue. As the appointment of a person from a private institution earlier created a controversy, we are confident that the Governor will go by precedence,” said a key administrator in the sector.
“If a person from a private institution is made the V-C, we will challenge this in the court,” said an aspirant.
The names of the three candidates will be finalised in the search committee meeting and submitted to the government. Then, the Chief Minister will verify the list and send it to the Governor. Finally, the Governor will appoint one as the V-C.
Published – February 18, 2025 03:15 am IST
