Pune: Govt Tightens Professor Recruitment Norms, Makes CCTV Recording Compulsory for Assistant Professor Interviews
Pune, 1st September 2026: The Higher and Technical Education Department has made CCTV recording of the entire interview process mandatory for the recruitment of 5,012 assistant professors in government-aided senior colleges across Maharashtra, with institutions required to preserve the footage for at least one year.
The recordings will have to be retained beyond one year if a complaint, objection, inquiry or court case is filed in connection with the recruitment, and can be destroyed only after the matter is finally disposed of. The move is aimed at ensuring greater transparency in the selection process.
The state government has approved the filling of 5,012 assistant professor vacancies in non-government aided senior colleges affiliated with public universities in Maharashtra. The posts have been sanctioned based on student enrolment figures as of October 2024 under the Directorate of Higher Education.
Under the recruitment guidelines, colleges will first have to obtain a non-creamy layer certificate for the post and submit the draft advertisement to the concerned university. The university will verify whether the prescribed educational qualifications comply with UGC and government norms and whether social and parallel reservations have been correctly implemented.
Candidates will be required to apply online, while colleges may also accept offline applications as an additional facility.
Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said the recruitment must be conducted transparently and on merit. He said comprehensive guidelines had been issued for the first time and that all institutions would be required to strictly follow them.
The CCTV footage of interviews will be treated as confidential and may be used as evidence in case of disputes over the evaluation or selection process.
While the management will remain responsible for conducting the recruitment, the concerned university will finalise the marks awarded during interviews. Officials said any irregularity could invite strict action against those responsible and may also put the college’s affiliation at risk.
