India’s premier engineering institutions have made a significant push to fill faculty vacancies, with more than 3,500 posts filled across the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) between September 2022 and May 2026. Yet, a key question remains unanswered: have the IITs actually achieved the faculty-to-student ratio needed to keep pace with their growing student population?A recent response by the Ministry of Education in the Lok Sabha has provided details of the recruitment drive but has not disclosed the current faculty-student ratio for individual IITs or institute-wise data on sanctioned, filled and vacant faculty posts over the past five years.
Over 3,500 faculty vacancies filled since September 2022
The Ministry of Education told the Lok Sabha that all Central Higher Educational Institutions were advised in September 2022 to undertake recruitment in “mission mode” to address faculty vacancies.As part of this drive, IITs filled more than 3,500 faculty vacancies between September 2022 and May 2026.However, the ministry clarified that faculty recruitment is not a one-time exercise. Vacancies continue to arise because of retirements and resignations, while new posts are created as IITs expand their student intake and introduce new academic programmes.The IITs, therefore, continue to issue rolling advertisements throughout the year to attract eligible candidates.
Around 460 visiting faculty members currently teaching in IITs
Permanent recruitment is not the only mechanism being used to meet teaching requirements.According to the ministry’s response, around 460 visiting faculty members are currently engaged in teaching and other academic activities across the IIT system.IITs also use guest and adjunct faculty, Professors of Practice and other academic appointments. These arrangements allow institutes to bring specialised expertise into classrooms, particularly from industry and other academic institutions.While such appointments can help address immediate teaching requirements, they are different from creating a stable pool of permanent faculty members.
What did the Lok Sabha question seek?
The issue was raised by Congress MP Sashi Tharoor, who sought detailed information about faculty recruitment and staffing levels across IITs.The questions included whether the government or IIT Council had prescribed a faculty-to-student ratio and what the actual ratio was at each IIT.The MP also sought information on the number of permanent and visiting faculty members over the past five years and details of sanctioned, filled and vacant faculty posts at individual institutes.Another aspect of the question focused on attracting doctoral alumni to IITs as permanent faculty members. It also sought details of measures to convert long-serving visiting or ad-hoc faculty members into permanent positions.The latest response, however, did not provide the institute-wise figures sought.
IITs have a 1:10 faculty-to-student norm
The faculty-student ratio has been a long-standing concern within the IIT system.An earlier Lok Sabha response in August 2025 stated that faculty posts in IITs are sanctioned on the basis of a 1:10 faculty-to-student ratio.In simple terms, the norm envisages one faculty member for every 10 students. The government has also described faculty sanctioning as a dynamic and continuous process, with requirements reviewed according to the needs of individual institutions.But the latest parliamentary response does not reveal whether individual IITs are currently meeting this benchmark.That distinction matters. Filling 3,500 vacancies sounds substantial, but the number alone cannot establish whether the teacher-student gap has been closed. The actual ratio depends on two factors, the number of faculty members currently in position and the total number of students enrolled.
The vacancy problem has been building for years
The latest recruitment figures have to be viewed against the backdrop of a long-running faculty shortage in the IIT system.In 2016, a report had highlighted around 2,600 vacant faculty positions across IITs. At the time, the student-teacher ratio was reported to be around 15:1, considerably higher than the desirable 10:1 ratio.The issue was significant because IITs have expanded considerably over the years, with rising student intake, new programmes and greater emphasis on postgraduate and doctoral education.In August 2022, a parliamentary response put the number of vacant teaching positions across the 23 IITs at 4,596.The mission mode recruitment exercise launched soon afterwards was aimed at tackling this backlog.
IIT Council had considered counting PhD scholars
The faculty shortage had also prompted the IIT Council to consider an unusual approach to calculating the student-teacher ratio.A proposal accepted by the council at the time suggested that five PhD scholars could be counted as equivalent to one faculty member for the purpose of calculating the ratio.The reasoning was that doctoral scholars also contribute to teaching undergraduate students and academic activities.With around 26,000 PhD scholars in IITs at the time, the proposal could potentially have added nearly 5,000 faculty-equivalent positions to the calculation.The move was presented as one way to help IITs address the gap between the existing student-teacher ratio and the desired 1:10 benchmark.
Recruitment is being widened beyond traditional channels
The Ministry of Education said discussions within the IIT Council have included several measures to improve faculty recruitment.These include rolling recruitment drives, special recruitment campaigns and efforts to recruit foreign faculty members and eligible Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders.The IIT Council has also discussed institutional performance reviews and regular monitoring of recruitment.Such measures are important because IITs compete not only with other Indian institutions but also with universities and research institutions abroad for highly qualified academics.
