Faced with a growing faculty shortage, the Punjab government has decided to bring back retired teachers on contract to meet urgent staffing needs in public medical colleges.
As per a notification from the Punjab Health Department, the age cap for hiring retired professors has been raised to 65.
The step aims to plug vacancies in vital fields such as cardiology, pediatric and cardiac surgery, pulmonology, oncology, anesthesia, forensic medicine, and biochemistry.
All 36 government medical colleges and teaching hospitals in the province have been directed to wrap up the recruitment process by June 30.
The hiring drive targets at least 12 departments with the most pressing shortages, focusing especially on associate professor positions.
A letter sent to public medical institutions clarified that these appointments will be temporary and will expire once regular hiring is finalized.