Two-year tenure; brings 31 years of teaching and administrative experience to key higher education post
KD NEWS SERVICE
Srinagar, Sep 07: The Jammu and Kashmir Government has appointed Prof. (Dr.) Twinkle Suri as the new Director Colleges, Jammu and Kashmir, entrusting her with a key administrative responsibility in the higher education sector of the Union Territory.
According to an order issued by the government on Monday, Dr Suri, presently serving as Principal and Dean, Academic Affairs at Cluster University of Jammu, has been transferred and posted as Director Colleges, J&K with immediate effect.
The appointment has been made on the recommendation of the duly constituted Selection Committee and with the approval of the Competent Authority. With the appointment, Dr Suri will take over the responsibilities of the Director Colleges from Dr Sheikh Ajaz Bashir, Professor in the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering at the Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), who had been holding the post as an additional charge.
The government order states that Dr Suri has been relieved of her existing assignment to take up the new responsibility.
“The term of Director Colleges shall be for a period of two years extendable by one year, subject to satisfactory performance and work and conduct,” the order states.
The government, however, has retained the option of conducting a fresh selection for the post, depending upon the circumstances and performance during the tenure.
The order further makes it clear that the Administrative Department shall have the authority to terminate the tenure of the Director Colleges before completion of the prescribed term if the incumbent’s performance, work or conduct is found to be unsatisfactory. Such action, however, would be taken only after providing the incumbent an opportunity of being heard.
Extensive academic and administrative experience
Dr Twinkle Suri brings more than three decades of experience in teaching, academic administration and institutional management to the position.
According to her professional profile, she has an enriching teaching and administrative experience spanning 31 years, during which she has held several important academic and administrative positions in Jammu and Kashmir’s education sector.
She served as the Founding Dean, Students Welfare and Head of the Department of English at Cluster University of Jammu for around seven years. Her tenure in these assignments provided her extensive exposure to student welfare, academic administration and institutional development.
She also served as Principal of Shri Pandit Prem Nath Dogra Government Degree College, Samba, for more than two years, gaining experience in managing a government degree college and overseeing its academic and administrative functioning.
Before moving into senior positions in higher education, Dr Suri also served as Deputy Director, Academics, at the J&K Board of School Education, giving her experience across different levels of the education administration system.
Her appointment as Director Colleges comes at a time when the higher education sector in Jammu and Kashmir is undergoing significant changes, with institutions focusing increasingly on academic quality, skill development, student welfare, research, innovation and implementation of the National Education Policy framework.
Academic and literary contributions
Dr Suri’s academic profile also extends beyond administration and classroom teaching. An English Honours graduate from Sophia College, Ajmer, she has been associated with research focusing on women’s writing, particularly African women’s literature.
She is among the early scholars to undertake research on Black women’s writing, with particular emphasis on African women and their literary voices.
Her book, A Room of Their Own: Women’s Voices in Africa, has received appreciation in literary circles internationally and reflects her academic engagement with questions of gender, identity, representation and women’s experiences.
She is currently engaged in a comparative study of Afro-Indian women’s writing and is also working on case studies portraying the experiences and stories of women crusaders in conflict zones.
Her academic work broadly reflects an inclusive and humanistic approach, with emphasis on giving greater space to diverse voices and experiences in literature and society.
Earlier appointment as Dean Academic Affairs
Dr Suri was appointed Dean, Academic Affairs, Cluster University of Jammu, in 2025 for a period of one year. Her subsequent appointment as Director Colleges now places her at the helm of an important administrative position responsible for matters concerning government degree colleges across Jammu and Kashmir.
The Director Colleges plays a significant role in coordinating and overseeing the functioning of government degree colleges, facilitating academic and administrative initiatives and ensuring effective implementation of government policies and programmes in the higher education sector.
With her extensive experience in teaching, college administration, university-level academic affairs and school education administration, Dr Suri’s appointment brings experience from multiple layers of the education system to the Directorate of Colleges.
Her two-year tenure, with a possible one-year extension subject to performance, is expected to provide continuity to the administration of government degree colleges while placing emphasis on academic standards, institutional development and student-oriented initiatives.
