For nearly twenty years, the Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) departments in Mizoram’s Government Colleges have quietly experienced one of the longest periods without regular faculty recruitment in the State’s higher education history.
During this period, information technology transformed every aspect of society. Digital governance expanded rapidly, software development became a major employment sector, cybersecurity emerged as a national priority, and artificial intelligence became a defining technology of the decade. Universities across India modernized their curricula, introduced new programmes, and strengthened their academic workforce.
In Mizoram, however, a different story unfolded.
Instead of periodic direct recruitment through the Mizoram Public Service Commission (MPSC), the BCA departments increasingly depended on temporary, part-time and later casual teaching appointments. What initially appeared to be a temporary administrative arrangement gradually became a long-term system spanning well over a decade.
Today, that system has become the subject of public debate, administrative scrutiny, Right to Information (RTI) disclosures, and ongoing litigation before the Gauhati High Court.
Yet the larger issue extends beyond a single court case.
It raises broader questions about public recruitment, academic standards, transparency, and the future of higher education in Mizoram.
The Last Regular Recruitment
Government records indicate that the last direct recruitment of Computer Science lecturers through the Mizoram Public Service Commission took place under Advertisement No. 6 of 2007–2008, issued on 19 June 2007.
The advertisement invited applications for Lecturer posts in several disciplines, including two posts in Computer Science. The prescribed qualifications included:
- Master’s Degree with at least 55% marks;
- Knowledge of Mizo language up to Middle School standard; and
- Qualification in the National Eligibility Test (NET) or a similar accredited test.
Subsequent MPSC recommendations in 2009 also reveal that appointments were recommended from the available panel for Computer Science posts.
Following those recruitments, however, no further regular recruitment of BCA faculty through the MPSC took place for almost two decades.
This prolonged absence of regular appointments would later shape the challenges now confronting Government Colleges across Mizoram.
Expansion Without Permanent Faculty
While regular recruitment remained absent, higher education in Mizoram continued to evolve.
Government Colleges expanded their academic programmes, including BCA courses that required faculty with specialized expertise in computer science, software engineering, databases, networking, programming, and emerging digital technologies.
Teaching requirements continued year after year.
Students continued to enroll.
Academic sessions continued uninterrupted.
Yet the mechanism for staffing these departments increasingly shifted toward temporary appointments.
The Beginning of Temporary Engagements
In October 2011, the Directorate of Higher & Technical Education issued Advertisement No. I of 2011–2012 inviting applications for engagement of part-time lecturers in Government Colleges.
The advertisement included BCA among the disciplines for which applications were invited.
The notification prescribed:
- Master’s Degree with 55% marks in the relevant discipline; and
- Knowledge of Mizo language up to Middle School standard.
These appointments were not regular Government service.
Instead, they were part-time engagements paid on a lecture basis, subject to a maximum monthly remuneration.
For many qualified young graduates, these positions represented an opportunity to begin an academic career while awaiting regular recruitment.
Few anticipated that temporary engagement would continue for years.
Temporary Became Long-Term
As years passed, the same mechanism continued.
Rather than periodic regular recruitment, Government Colleges repeatedly relied upon temporary faculty to meet teaching requirements.
Some served continuously for several years.
Others joined later.
Eventually, the number of unqualified part-time Assistant Professors across Government Colleges reached thirty-three, covering multiple disciplines including Hindi, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Economics, Political Science, Zoology and BCA.
Within the BCA departments alone, Government records identify six individuals serving as unqualified part-time Assistant Professors in Government Champhai College and Government Kolasib College.
The issue therefore was never confined solely to Computer Science.
It reflected a broader dependence upon temporary academic staffing across several Government Colleges.
A Changing Regulatory Environment
During the same period, higher education regulations across India continued to evolve.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) periodically revised the minimum qualifications required for appointment and promotion of teachers in universities and colleges, culminating in the UGC Regulations, 2018.
State advertisements also evolved.
For example, by Advertisement No. I of 2015, the Higher & Technical Education Department prescribed:
- Master’s Degree with 55% marks; and
- Possession of NET/SLET/SET certificates
as essential educational qualifications for engagement as part-time lecturers.
This marked a significant shift from earlier temporary recruitment practices and reflected the increasing emphasis on nationally recognized eligibility standards.
An Explicit Condition
The engagement orders themselves also contained an important clause.
The order issued in March 2015 clearly stated that the engagement was purely temporary and could be terminated at any time without assigning any reason. It further required certain appointees who did not possess NET to acquire the qualification within two years.
From an administrative perspective, these appointments were never intended to create permanent tenure.
From the perspective of many temporary teachers, however, repeated extensions over several years created an expectation of continuity.
That difference in understanding would later become central to the present controversy.
A Growing Pool of Qualified Candidates
While temporary appointments continued, another development occurred quietly.
Every year, more students from Mizoram completed postgraduate education in Computer Science and Information Technology.
Many qualified the National Eligibility Test (NET).
Others earned doctoral degrees.
Several obtained M.Tech. degrees, GATE qualifications, and research experience from institutions across India.
Consequently, the number of candidates meeting contemporary academic standards increased significantly.
Many of these qualified candidates waited for years in anticipation of regular recruitment.
For them, the continued dependence on temporary appointments became not merely an administrative issue but a question of equal opportunity in public employment.
Beyond a Court Case
Today, the controversy surrounding BCA faculty recruitment is often viewed through the lens of the ongoing proceedings before the Gauhati High Court.
However, reducing the issue to litigation alone risks overlooking the larger institutional questions.
How should Government Colleges balance faculty shortages with academic standards?
When temporary arrangements continue for many years, how should they eventually come to an end?
How can the State protect both experienced teachers and the legitimate expectations of newly qualified candidates?
And perhaps most importantly, why has regular recruitment in a rapidly growing academic discipline remained absent for nearly two decades?
Those questions lie at the heart of the BCA faculty debate—and their answers will shape not only the future of Computer Science education in Mizoram but also public confidence in the State’s higher education system.