Editor,
The law and order situation in Garo Hills is deteriorating day by day. Vested interests whether they be insurgent groups like GNLA or ANVC(B) or pressure groups just give an order for bandhs and road blockades from their cosy hotel rooms. The ANVC (B) chairman is loitering around Tura. He was spotted with a long beard in Tura Super market recently. He was at his home with the family when a group of women accosted him for creating nuisance about toll gates at GHADC. It is known that he is collecting monthly hafta of Rs.5000 from the shopkeepers at Tura bazaar. There was one group of boys who posed as FKJGP members and were collecting Rs.3000 from the shops at Nazing bazar a week ago.
The Government and the police might be clueless about extortions by these groups but why is the Government mum on matters regarding bandhs and road blockades? The public are living in a state of fear and insecurity. Government does not provide security for office goers or for anyone on duty at hospitals, schools or colleges. Sometimes the bandh is suddenly imposed and our children go to school without any knowledge that they are not safe. Yesterday, we witnessed arson and violence between TGCSU and GSU. Today there was closure of shops, stopping public movement and vehicles. Which group will be the next to impose such diktat upon the public? The public unfortunately can do nothing but to lament their fate. They feel completely abandoned by the Government. There is not a word of assurance or empathy so far from the Government. So now the public have begun to believe that the Government itself has a hidden agenda by not arresting the Chairman of ANVC (B) who is very much in Tura. We demand that the Government take strong action against law breakers and bandh callers and curb all such menace by imposing stricter laws to rein in the groups who are making people’s lives miserable day by day.
Yours etc.,
Anna Sangma,
New Tura,
Will MPSC mend its ways?
Editor,
Apropos the letter by John Richards about the MPSC violation of UGC norms, it happened at the time when I applied for the post at Tura Government College that one of the selected candidates was not NET/PhD/MPhil qualified. The minimum qualification required to be a College Lecturer is “good academic record, 55% marks (or equivalent) and qualifying in the National Eligibility Test (NET) or and accredited test (State Level Eligibility Test – SLET/SET)”. I fail to understand why the MPSC doesn’t take this into account?
The good thing though is that, this year, it seems the minimum qualification is NET/PhD. Hence I would differ with John Richards about the UGC Regulations. The UGC Regulation on minimum qualification 2010 (dated 30th June 2010) (clause 3.3.1) however states that candidates who are/have been awarded PhD “shall be exempted from NET” and M.Phil is not a minimum criteria anymore.
I just wish that MPSC had done that since the year 2009.
Yours etc.,
Name withheld on request
Fading Discipline at ARPS!
Editor,
Through this letter I would like to bring to the notice of the Principal and Governing body members of the Assam Rifles Public School (ARPS) about the fading discipline among the students. Last week I went to ARPS to drop my son after a day long medical treatment and was shocked to see some senior students smoking in uniform in the hostel campus. When I entered the hostel to help my son with his baggage I was shocked to find almost all hostellers holding cell phones and talking to friends before leaving for their respective classes.
I was very disappointed to see such an atmosphere inside the hostel campus of a reputed, para-military school, where disciplined is supposed to be the top priority. My first thought was to take my son out of the school but on second thoughts I dropped the idea as he would lose one academic year. Further, being a concerned father, I interviewed some students about the atmosphere prevailing in the hostel campus. I heard startling revelations. I was told that students never sleep before midnight; that the hostel warden never visits them and there is no teacher to supervise the evening studies of students.
As far as I know, ARPS is one of the best residential schools in India which was established in 1980, by the then Governor of the North Eastern states, LP Singh. The Motto of the school is to provide quality education to the wards of JCOs, Officers and personnel of Assam Rifles. Sadly, today, ARPS, which has the best of world class infrastructure has not only lost its heart; it seems to have lost its direction and goal. It is a sad situation for the future generation. I call upon the management to do some overhauling exercise to restore discipline amongst the students before it is too late.
Yours etc.,
Name withheld on request