Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has brought into force the Odisha State Public Universities (Reservation in Teachers’ Cadre) Act, 2026 following assent by Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati, marking a significant reform in faculty recruitment across state-run universities.
The legislation comes after the Odisha State Public Universities (Reservation in Teachers’ Cadre) Bill, 2026 was passed in the Assembly on March 31 following extensive deliberations.
Describing the move as a landmark initiative, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj said the Act aims to ensure adequate representation of Scheduled Tribes (ST), Scheduled Castes (SC) and Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC) in the higher education sector.
A key feature of the new law is the shift from a department-wise reservation system to a university-as-a-unit model for implementing quotas in teaching posts. Under the revised framework, reservation provisions will apply to direct recruitment across all faculty positions, including Professors, Associate Professors and Assistant Professors.
The Minister said the reform is expected to bring greater equity and balance in representation across universities, addressing long-standing concerns over uneven implementation of reservation policies.
Highlighting parallel developments in the sector, Suraj informed that Vice-Chancellor positions in 14 state public universities have recently been filled, with academicians from Odisha appointed to key leadership roles. He expressed confidence that the new leadership would strengthen academic standards and promote research-oriented education.
He added that the implementation of the Odisha Universities (Amendment) Act, 2024, along with the new reservation law, would accelerate the recruitment process to fill long-pending teaching vacancies in public universities.
