CHANDIGARH, Aug 14 — At least 322 government quarters at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) remain vacant, even as 847 employees await allotment, a recent RTI has revealed.
The unoccupied houses, meant for both faculty and non-teaching staff, include residences for nursing officers and other Group B and C employees, who have the longest waiting lists. PGI staff are typically accommodated in Sectors 12 and 24, but many are forced to stay in nearby rented accommodations, often at significant personal expense.
The RTI, filed by Ashwani Munjal, chairperson of the PGI contractual workers’ joint action committee, shows several houses have remained unallotted since 2017. Despite this backlog, the House Allotment Committee (HAC), responsible for distributing these quarters, has convened only once in 2025—on July 30—after an 11-month gap since its previous meeting in September 2024.
During the recent meeting, chaired by Prof. Arun Kumar Aggarwal, 12 houses were allotted. The orders for these allotments were passed on August 12, coinciding with the date the RTI response was provided. The RTI had been filed on July 9.
“The major reason behind the delay appears to be the irregular meetings of the HAC, but the engineering department’s failure to provide timely fitness reports for each house has equally contributed to the backlog,” Munjal said. A letter from the estate branch, dated June 16, 2025, noted that while the list of vacant houses had been shared with the engineering department, the required fitness reports had not been received. “Without these reports, allotments could not be processed,” the letter stated.
Munjal further highlighted the financial impact: “This delay is causing a huge loss to the government exchequer. PGI is missing out on licence fees and monthly rent from allotted houses, while continuing to pay 20% of the basic pay as House Rent Allowance to eligible staff each month.”
PGIMER director Dr. Vivek Lal and Deputy Director Administration Pankaj Rai did not comment despite repeated attempts. The official spokesperson said a fact-finding exercise would be necessary before providing an explanation.
