TNNLucknow: The Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI)’s effort to recruit new faculty members has hit a roadblock as several applicants have flagged procedural inconsistencies in a complaint with the CM Jansunvai Portal.In July 2025, the state government had approved recruitment of specialist doctors to address the persistent shortfall. Subsequently, in August 2025, SGPGI issued an advertisement inviting applications for 220 regular specialists who were to be appointed for the upcoming advanced paediatric centre and other departments. More than 1,000 applications were received on the count.While the procedures were underway, a delegation from the institute’s SC-OBC Association met the director and made a representation that no recruitment drive can be initiated before clearing the existing backlog vacancies. There were 98 positions largely in the reserved category. In response, SGPGI advertised recruitment against the vacant positions on January 24, 2026.In February 2026, MLC Lal Behari Yadav raised the issue of the vacant backlog positions on the floor of the UP Vidhan Parishad. Here, the institute gave in writing that ‘the process of recruitment to clear backlog vacancies had been initiated and that it would be finalised before the start of the regular fresh recruitment process.’All this while, candidates who had appeared in the previous recruitment drive kept waiting for clarity on their next stage.As of now, the matter has led to a divide between applicants. While one side questioned how the institute initiated a fresh recruitment drive (for backlog vacancies) when the first one was in its final stages.“While recruitment that started in August remains pending without any interview schedule, interviews for a backlog recruitment that began in February are commencing mid-April 2026. This sequencing risks a reversal of academic seniority which means that candidates who became eligible later will be appointed earlier.As a result, the academic seniors will get junior roles. And in case of govt , one day of seniority means seniority for life,” said one of the aggrieved students.Adding that such an outcome could undermine institutional hierarchy and create strain within departments and faculty members in future, another added: “The problem – which is an administrative lapse — arose because the eligibility cutoff dates are different – August 8, 2025, in the regular case and February 28, 2026, in the backlog.”The other side maintains that the institute must abide by the available rules which prescribe that backlog vacancies must be filled before any fresh recruitment drive is launched.When contacted, director, SGPGI Prof Radha Krishan Dhiman said: “It is true that we initiated a recruitment drive in August 2025, but when the matter of backlog vacancies was raised…we realised that all the rules and regulations clearly say that the backlog vacancies are to be filled first and we have proceeded accordingly.”It may also be noted that the institute had tried to initiate the exercise to clear backlog vacancies thrice between 2022 and 2025.
