RTI exposes heavy dependence on contractual staff at MANUU
HYDERABAD: An RTI application by Kareem Ansari reveals an imbalance in staffing at Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU). The university employs 376 contractual or guest staff for non-teaching roles, nearly as many as its total sanctioned regular non-teaching workforce of 449. MANUU provided this information in response to the RTI.
Going into details, the university said it has 449 sanctioned non-teaching posts. Of these, 418 are filled and 31 are vacant. However, 376 people are working in non-teaching roles as contractual or guest staff. This number nearly matches the regular workforce.
This situation raises questions about how much of the university’s daily non-teaching work depends on employees without permanent status, job security, or regular benefits.
Further, the RTI reply also shows that regular vacancies are being filled slowly through direct recruitment. In 2024, only 6 posts were filled, and in 2025, 23 posts, and in 2026, so far, 13 posts have been filled.
Moreover, in total, only 42 non-teaching posts have been filled by direct recruitment in the last three years. This is low compared to the 376 contractual or guest staff and the 31 vacancies that remain.
Ansari asked for a timeline to fill the vacancies before the next academic year. The university did not provide a schedule. It only said recruitment would follow the Cadre Recruitment Rules, which the Executive Council has approved. No specific date or target was given for filling the backlog.
Additionally, the RTI reply also revealed that the University Grants Commission has not sanctioned any Record Assistant posts at MANUU. Record-keeping or support work is handled by existing staff or outsourced to contractual workers, since there is no dedicated cadre for this role.
Regarding reservation, the university said it follows the Reservation Roster Registrar for non-teaching posts, as per Government of India rules. However, the RTI did not provide a detailed, category-wise breakdown to verify how reservation quotas are applied in Group A, B, and C non-teaching jobs.
The RTI shows MANUU is relying more on contractual and guest staff to run administrative and support work, while regular recruitment remains slow. Thirty-one sanctioned posts are still vacant, and there is no clear plan to fill them. With contractual staff nearly matching the regular non-teaching workforce, the data raises questions about long-term staffing plans at one of India’s leading Urdu-medium central universities.
