Jairam Ramesh flags vacancies at top institutions, says higher education is ‘paying the price for being modified’

Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh on Thursday criticised the government over the reported absence of regular, full-time heads at several leading higher education institutions, calling the situation “unacceptable” and alleging that India’s higher education system was “paying the price for being Modified.”

In a statement, Ramesh said 37 of the 155 Institutions of National Importance did not have a regular, full-time head. He also highlighted vacancies among Central Universities, Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs).

“This is indeed an unacceptable state of affairs—37 out of 155 Institutions of National Importance do not have a regular, full-time head,” Ramesh said.

According to the Congress leader, 20 of the 48 Central Universities, 10 of the 25 IIITs, three of the 21 IIMs and three of the 31 NITs did not have a regular, full-time Vice-Chancellor or Director who was not serving on extension.

Ramesh further took a swipe at the quality of leadership at institutions where regular appointments had been made. “And when there are regular, full-time VCs/Directors, the less said about a number of them the better,” he said.

Ramesh further said: “Higher education in India is paying the price for being Modified.”

The Congress has repeatedly raised concerns over vacancies in senior academic and administrative positions, arguing that prolonged arrangements through acting or extended tenures can affect institutional autonomy, academic governance and decision-making. Universities and premier technical and management institutions rely on full-time heads to oversee academic programmes, appointments, research, finances and long-term institutional planning.

Ramesh’s remarks come amid a wider political debate over the functioning and autonomy of higher education institutions, with the opposition frequently accusing the Narendra Modi government of interfering in educational institutions and weakening established academic structures.