TIRUCHY: Higher Education Minister P Viswanathan said here on Tuesday that the government will fill 9,000 assistant professor vacancies in government colleges across the State within two years in three phases through the Teachers Recruitment Board (TRB).

Inaugurating training for professors of government colleges in the Thanjavur region, Viswanathan said the first phase of recruitment had already been conducted in 2025, with 2,708 candidates to be appointed from among 42,000 applicants. The second and third phases would each see 3,000 appointments, he said. “All the existing 9,000 vacancies would be filled within two years,” the minister said.

Viswanathan said there were around 8,000 guest lecturers who had cleared NET or SLET, many of whom held PhDs. Soon after the TVK government was formed, their honorarium was increased by Rs 5,000, he said. The government was also planning to restructure the higher education system, he said.

On the appointment of Vice-Chancellors to five universities, the minister declined to comment, saying the matter was before the court. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay was taking steps to appoint the Vice-Chancellors through proper negotiations, he said.

Viswanathan also assured that a Government Order on seniority in government colleges would be issued. “These works were not initiated for the past six years, but now the Chief Minister has started the works for the benefit of the teachers,” he said.