Special Correspondent Panaji
Stating that “there is no recruitment ban in Goa” as far as filling vacancies at Goa University is concerned, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Monday said the government has adopted alternative measures to improve the university’s NAAC rating.
“The Goa government has been supporting Goa University with regards to infrastructure. For the construction of the building for Manohar Parrikar School of Law, Governance and Public Policy, the government has sanctioned Rs 22 crore,” Sawant, who holds the education portfolio, said.
He further said Rs 12 crore has been sanctioned for establishing Bio-Incubator and Information Technology (IT) Incubator facilities at Goa University.
Sawant also said an amount of Rs 100 crore has been sanctioned for upgrading Goa University as a Multi-Disciplinary Education and Research University (MERU) under the Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan.
In a written reply to an unstarred question by Fatorda GFP MLA Vijai Sardesai, Sawant said that the state has set up GURU (Goa University Research Park Unit) to nurture innovators, researchers and incubators in start-ups in the bioengineering, agriculture and healthcare domains.
On faculty vacancies, Sawant said, “The government approved vacancies as per the request made by Goa University, and there is no recruitment ban in Goa.”
The reply also cited a July 6, 2025 interview of the Vice Chancellor of Goa University published in The Navhind Times, where it was mentioned that around 80% of the faculty are Assistant Professors and about 50% of them lack PhDs. This was said to have impacted three key NIRF criteria—faculty with PhDs (6%), research and professional practice (30%), and graduation outcomes based on PhD graduates (8%)—totalling 44%.
The government, however, has not conducted any internal review or sought expert opinion on the impact of domicile requirements for faculty recruitment on the university’s NAAC and NIRF rankings.
Notably, less than two weeks after the interview, Goa University received A+ accreditation from NAAC for the first time.
