Patna: Established with much fanfare in 2010 as a purely ‘professional’ university, Aryabhatta Knowledge University (AKU) is unable to start its new academic innings owing to the shortage of teachers. The university has got only four full-time faculties against 39 sanctioned posts in its five centres of studies, even as classes of students admitted to the current academic session (2024-25) are scheduled to begin soon.
Following the creation of separate universities for engineering and health education in the state, all the medical colleges and engineering institutions attached to AKU were transferred to the Bihar Engineering University and Bihar University of Health Sciences University. The state govt then set up five autonomous centres, namely, Aryabhatta Centre for Nano Science and Technology (ACNST), School of Journalism and Mass Communications (SJMC), Centre for Geographical Studies (CGS), Patliputra School of Economics (PSE) and Centre for River Studies (CRS).
While ACNST was already functioning at AKU, other centres started functioning after 2020 with the appointment of their directors. The state govt sanctioned six posts of teachers in PSE, seven each in ACNST, CGS and CRS, and 12 posts in SJMC. However, there is not a single teacher in PSE and even its director retired last year. The remaining centres have one full-time faculty each and the academic work was thus far being managed somehow.
AKU registrar Ram Ji Singh said following the recent talks with the state govt, the university is contemplating appointing guest faculties against sanctioned posts at each centres to ensure regular academic activities.
When asked about the appointment of regular teachers, he said the govt has yet to take a formal decision on these appointments. The university court had decided to hand over the job of these appointments to the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC). “However, according to a recent decision of the state govt, all appointments are to be made by the Bihar State University Service Commission. A final decision in the matter is likely to be made soon,” the registrar said.
At present, the university runs MTech course in nanoscience and technology (20 seats), MA in journalism and mass communications (30 seats), MA/MSc in geography (50 seats), MSc in river science and management (20 seats) and MA in economics (30 seats), PG diploma in development communication (30 seats), PG diploma in online and digital journalism (30 seats) and certificate course in writing for media (45 seats).

We also published the following articles recently