High Court restores HASA to NEHU staff

SHILLONG: The High Court of Meghalaya has restored the payment of Hill Area Special Allowance (HASA) to NEHU staff.
In an interim order on Friday, Judge SR Sen directed the authorities concerned to continue payment of HASA to the teaching and the non-teaching staff of NEHU till the next date of hearing.
The court also stayed the resolution of the Executive Council on June 14 and the related notification by NEHU discontinuing HASA.
The matter will be heard after three weeks for counter affidavit and further order.
After the verdict, the NEHU teachers’ association in a statement issued on Friday said the VC of NEHU had filed a caveat apprehending that NEHUTA might seek justice in the court of law against the “arbitrary withdrawal of HASA through fraudulent means by way of blatant manipulation of EC minutes misguiding the MHRD as well as the office of the Visitor of the university, the President of India”.
According to NEHUTA, the court took a serious view of the matter that without official notification to NEHU employees, “Vice-Chancellor Prof. S.K Srivastava in an arbitrary style discontinued the payment of HASA, which is highly irregular and improper”.