The Khallikote Autonomous College in Berhampur. Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, Feb. 23: Khallikote Autonomous College here is facing a severe staff crunch. For 4,000-odd students, the college has just 39 teaching staff, though the number of sanctioned teaching posts is now 90.

There are only five professors in the college, with six posts lying vacant. The situation would be worse as two teachers were about to retire at the end of this month followed by eight more teachers later this year, said college principal Dakshya Prasad Nanda.

This staff crunch has hit almost all departments. Vacancies in the departments of anthropology, botany, chemistry, commerce, economics, education, geology, English, Odia, Hindi, history, philosophy, physics, political science, statistics and zoology ranges from 30 to 70 per cent. For philosophy and statistics, there is just one teacher for each subject while there is none to teach Telugu.

The non-teaching staff strength is in no better position either. The college has no office superintendent, head clerk or senior stenographer. Some posts of junior clerks, peons, guards and sweepers are also lying vacant. College sources said 18 non-teaching posts were lying vacant against 75 sanctioned posts.

Advocate and former student of the college Prafulla Jagannath Padhi said: “The century-old institution has been the centre of learning and intellectual pursuits in Odisha, but the situation now is pitiable.”

Established in 1856 as a zila school, the institution continued as a high school till 1878, after which it acquired the status of an intermediate college. In 1887, it was renamed as Native College. In 1896, the building, which, now houses the Khallikote Junior College, was constructed. The present playground was acquired in 1913.