RIMS Clinical Psychology Dept's ailment diagnosed
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, August 06 2010: Violation of the laid down norms and wilful negligence on the part of the authorities concerned are said to be at the root cause of the impending abolition of the Clinical Psychology Department in RIMS, speculation of which has been rife following the failure to conduct the entrance examination for admission to M Phil course for the current academic year.

According to a reliable source, though the Clinical Psychology Department in RIMS, which is eyeing to be upgraded to the status of AIIMS, is one of the 10 recognised centres in India where MPhil course is being offered, none of the faculty members in the Department are qualified as per the guidelines of the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI).

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As a matter of fact, all the faculty members (both regular and on contract) at RIMS should be appointed by a selection committee headed by the Director General of Health Services, Government of India.

But none of the present faculty members in the Clinical Psychology Department, which include one Professor and four Assistant Professors have been appointed by the said selection committee.

As per RCI guidelines, faculty on superannuation and on contract basis are not counted as the 'core' faculty member and no student can be taken against them.

As none of the faculty members in Clinical Psychology Department are 'core' faculty members, no student should have been taken for admission against these contract faculty members in the first place.

So unless immediate measures are taken up to appoint 'core' faculty members on regular basis, the validity of conducting entrance examination for enrolling new students will be questioned in view of the future career of the students, the source pointed out.

The source further explained that as per the guidelines of RCI, to become a Professor or an Additional Professor in any medical institute or centre offering MPhil course in Clinical Psychology, the essential qualification is MPhil or PhD with nine years' teaching experience including three years in the capacity of an Associate Professor.

For the Associate Professor, the essential qualification is either MPhil or PhD with five years' teaching experience in the capacity of an Assistant Professor while for the Assistant Professor, it is MPhil with teaching experience of 2 years.

Although the Clinical Psychology Department in RIMS has been functioning since 2003, the guidelines of the RCI have been wilfully neglected both in appointment of the faculty members who are not qualified as well as in enrolling of students against the faculty members who don't constitute the 'core' faculty, the source added.

It may be noted here that students are selected for admission to MPhil course in Clinical Psychology on the basis of an entrance examination which is usually conducted in the month of July every year.

This year's entrance exam was proposed to be conducted on June 23 last.

But has been deferred without giving any reason.