Over 1,000 posts of doctors were lying vacant in health institutions across Assam due to which around 1,800 doctors were engaged on contract to overcome this shortage, a state minister said in the Assembly on Thursday.

Though steps were being taken to fill the 1,115 vacancies in a phased manner, the state government has meanwhile engaged 1,792 doctors on a contractual basis under the National Health Mission (NHM) to meet the immediate requirement, state Health minister said. The state government has also engaged 12,528 non gazetted employees against 3,999 posts lying vacant, the minister said in a reply to a question of a politician of the Congress.

The posts were lying vacant in health facilities of the state under Health and Family Welfare (A) Department. Another 1,342 posts of gazetted and non-gazetted staff in medical colleges and other institutions under Health and Family Welfare (B) Department are also lying vacant, he said. At least 366 faculty posts under the Directorate of Medical Education and 57 similar posts under the Directorate of AYUSH are lying vacant, he said. A total of 355 posts of assistant professors in government-funded colleges, and 22,938 posts in different categories were also lying vacant under the Directorate of Secondary Education, he said.