New Delhi: Nearly five years after the Centre launched a Mission Mode drive to clear backlog vacancies in centrally funded higher education institutions, 32,114 posts, including 18,757 faculty positions, have been filled, the Ministry of Education told the Rajya Sabha.
But the latest parliamentary reply does not disclose how many vacancies remain across the centrally funded higher education institutions (CHEIs) covered by the drive, making it difficult to assess how far the recruitment push has reduced the overall vacancy stock.
The government first launched the special recruitment push in 2021 against a substantial backlog, particularly in reserved-category faculty posts. The latest figures show the scale of recruitment since the Mission Mode drive was expanded in September 2022, but do not provide a comparable current vacancy figure.
Mission Mode was launched amid a large vacancy backlog
In August 2021, the Ministry of Education told Parliament that 47.57% of sanctioned teaching posts reserved for SC, ST and OBC candidates in centrally run institutions were vacant.
The vacancy rate was particularly high for OBC posts, with 4,821 of 8,617 sanctioned OBC teaching posts vacant. For SC posts, 2,608 of 6,356 sanctioned positions were vacant.
The ministry subsequently directed all CHEIs to clear the backlog in Mission Mode over a one-year period from September 5, 2021 to September 4, 2022, with institutions asked to submit regular reports on progress.
The vacancy problem was broader than the reserved-category backlog. By December 2021, government data showed 10,814 teaching posts vacant across Central Universities, IITs and IIMs, including 6,535 in Central Universities, 3,876 in IITs and 403 in IIMs.
A March 2022 parliamentary response put the figure at 11,350, comprising 6,558 vacancies in Central Universities, 4,370 in IITs and 422 in IIMs.
First Mission Mode drive struggled with reserved vacancies
The first year of the drive did not clear all identified reserved-category vacancies.
Data reported in December 2022 showed that 33 Central Universities had identified 1,097 SC/ST/OBC faculty vacancies, but only 212 were filled during the exercise. Eighteen of those universities did not fill any reserved-category teaching vacancy despite identifying vacancies.
The government subsequently continued the recruitment exercise.
In September 2022, the Ministry of Education again directed CHEIs to undertake Mission Mode recruitment. The scope included institutions such as IITs, IIMs, IIITs, IISERs, NITs and Central Universities.
32,114 posts filled since September 2022
The latest parliamentary reply states that, from September 2022 to May 23, 2026, CHEIs filled 32,114 posts, including 18,757 faculty positions. That represents an increase from the 26,751 posts, including 15,637 faculty positions, reported as filled under Mission Mode up to December 23, 2024.
The latest figures therefore show that another 5,363 posts, including 3,120 faculty positions, were filled between December 2024 and May 2026. However, these figures cannot be treated as a direct measure of the reduction in vacancies.
Five years of recruitment, but no consolidated vacancy picture
| Period | Scope | Vacancy / recruitment position |
| August 2021 | Centrally run institutions, reserved teaching posts | 47.57% of reserved teaching posts vacant |
| December 2021 | Central Universities, IITs and IIMs | 10,814 teaching posts vacant |
| March 2022 | Central Universities, IITs and IIMs | 11,350 teaching posts vacant |
| September 2021–September 2022 | 33 Central Universities, SC/ST/OBC posts | 1,097 identified; 212 filled |
| September 2022–December 2024 | All CHEIs | 26,751 posts filled, including 15,637 faculty |
| September 2022–May 23, 2026 | All CHEIs | 32,114 posts filled, including 18,757 faculty |
The figures are not directly comparable because the institutional coverage and time periods vary.
The government has said vacancies are a continuous phenomenon, arising from retirement, promotion, resignation, death, creation of new institutions, new schemes and projects, and expansion of existing institutions.
That means the number of appointments made cannot, by itself, establish how much the vacancy stock has fallen.
The latest reply does not provide a consolidated figure showing sanctioned posts, posts filled and vacancies remaining across the CHEIs covered by the Mission Mode drive.
Recruitment push continues
The government again asked CHEIs to fill backlog vacancies in Mission Mode in October 2025.
Centrally financed institutions have also adopted year-round advertisements, search-cum-selection procedures, special recruitment drives and outreach to alumni, scientists and faculty to accelerate hiring.
The UGC has launched the CU-Chayan common recruitment portal for Central Universities, allowing institutions to list faculty vacancies and job advertisements on a common platform.
The government also said recruitment in CHEIs is undertaken autonomously by individual institutions under their respective Acts and regulations, with selection committees and independent subject experts forming part of the process.
Vacancies in State universities are not maintained centrally because these institutions are established under State Acts and recruitment is undertaken by the respective state governments or universities.
The information was provided by Minister of State for Education Sukanta Majumdar in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.
