Kolkata: Recruitment Process for Assistant Professors Under Scrutiny

Concerns Over Merit List Inclusion

Questions have emerged regarding the integrity of the recruitment process for assistant professor positions in various medical colleges across West Bengal. Controversy surrounds the merit list published by the West Bengal Health Recruitment Board (WBHRB), which includes several doctors affiliated with the North Bengal lobby. Notably, some candidates who previously protested the RG Kar incident have been excluded from this list.

Controversial Figures on the List

The merit list features individuals with contentious backgrounds, including a doctor who had been previously suspended. Additionally, the spouse of one of these doctors is also among the shortlisted candidates. This situation has led to widespread concern within the medical community, with many practitioners questioning the fairness of the recruitment process. While not all candidates on the list are deemed undeserving, there is a shared belief that existing flaws in the medical education system prior to the RG Kar cleanup may have influenced this contentious outcome.

Selection Criteria and Allegations of Bias

According to the established selection criteria, candidates were assessed based on a total of 100 marks: 75 for academic achievements, 10 for experience, and 15 for the interview. Medical professionals have raised alarms, noting that 85 of these marks were derived from accomplishments obtained before the cleanup initiative began. This has prompted suspicions regarding the integrity of the selection process.

Reports indicate that some candidates leveraged their connections within the North Bengal lobby to secure favorable positions on the merit list. Sources suggest that the evaluation process was skewed, with experts awarding only 5 marks, while the majority of the evaluation was determined by HRB administration members, who lack medical expertise. Furthermore, it has come to light that the administration did not conduct physical verifications of original documents, leading to allegations of document tampering.

Reactions from the Medical Community

A senior doctor commented on the situation, stating, “We are not asserting that everyone on the merit list is undeserving. However, systemic issues that existed before the cleanup may have contributed to this controversial outcome.”

Sourav Dutta, chairman of the state-level grievance redressal committee, remarked, “The interview process is fraught with controversies. If the HRB and the Directorate of Medical Education operated transparently, such issues could have been avoided.”

Another senior doctor raised questions about the selection of a suspended physician, asking, “How can a suspended doctor be permitted to participate in the recruitment process and be selected? Certain HRB members exert pressure on the medical community, and this cannot occur without the involvement of these controversial figures from the North Bengal lobby. We urge the Chief Minister to intervene.”

Professor Manas Gumta from the general surgery department expressed, “We called for a transparent recruitment process, but that was not upheld, allowing controversial names to surface.” Sajal Biswas, the general secretary of the Service Doctor Forum, added, “The scores of these contentious candidates were artificially inflated to facilitate their recruitment as assistant professors.”

Related Developments

In related news, a junior doctor has joined a hunger strike at NBMCH following a recent incident involving a doctor in Kolkata, further highlighting ongoing tensions within the medical community.