Editor,
This is to clarify that all student related matters including NEHUSU election is being handled by the office of the DSW independently and there is no interference in whatsoever way by the University Administration.
The Election Commission of the University had initiated the process of electing new office bearers of NEHUSU in the month of September 2019 by forming the election committee. Subsequently, the filing of nominations and the scrutiny process had also been initiated by the end of September and the date of election as October 3, 2019 was declared. In the meantime, a student filed a complaint against one of the contesting candidate (PG Student) on the grounds that the date of birth of that contestant had crossed the maximum age limit to legitimately contest an election as per the Lyngdoh Committee Recommendations 2006. The matter was referred to the Grievance Redressal Cell (GRC) for NEHUSU Election 2019 and elections pending the decision of the Cell. The GRC constituted as per the Lyngdoh Committee met on the October 03, 2019 and took a decision to invite the response of the candidate against whom the complaint has been filed and also to seek legal opinion.
In addition to the above, another complaint was also received from a student in which he stated that “unknown miscreants are threatening and intimidating him from contesting the NEHUSU elections,” which had compelled him to withdraw his candidature for safety reasons. Further, after the Puja holidays, an unfortunate incident occurred at around midnight of October 9, 2019 in which about 10 unidentified masked miscreants had entered one of the hostels in the campus and attacked two students with iron rods. One of the injured students was a candidate for the NEHUSU election 2019. This incident was promptly reported to the Police and an FIR was lodged by the University and a report is awaited.
Taking all these into consideration and keeping in mind the safety and security of the students and in order to prevent further intimidation and violence, the election commission of the university has decided to postpone the election and to await the report of the Police investigation. The DSW has already circulated a detailed note to all NEHU students regarding the circumstances leading to the postponement of elections.
Yours etc.,
(Prof S. Umdor)
Dean Students’ Welfare,
NEHU
Turkey’s intransigent stance
Editor,
Turkey’s stand against India on Kashmir is quite nettlesome and so the Indian government on Wednesday asked its citizens to exercise extreme caution while traveling to the West Asian nation. Though the Indian mission in Ankara (Capital of Turkey) has mentioned ‘situation in the region’ as the reason behind the advisory, the alert comes amidst strained diplomatic ties between the two countries after Turkey backed Pakistan on the Kashmir issue at the United Nations. It may be recalled that Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had tried to attract international attention on the Kashmir conflict at the UNGA last month. This has irked India and put on hold Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to Ankara and there is a strong possibility of India imposing trade restrictions.
As birds of a feather flock together, Turkey and Malaysia have come out openly to stand by Pakistan on the Kashmir issue. They have already put their weight behind Pakistan in the fight against India. These allies associate not out of any ideology but out of religious fervor. Where there is intense fervor for someone or something, there will be no rational thinking. Likewise, Pakistan has no right to question the abrogation of Article 370 which is exclusively an internal matter of India. The rest of the world understood it being the internal affair of India except Malaysia and Turkey which are trying to add fuel to the fire of strained relations between India and Pakistan.
The holier than thou attitude of Turkey is baffling as its unilateral military offensive in north-east Syria received worldwide condemnation. Without mincing words, India also condemned Turkey’s military action in Syria. Its action has caused humanitarian and civilian distress. It even used chemical bombs against the Syrians in utter violation of prevailing international law. So, Pakistan’s friends are as bad as Pakistan. Can we expect to get grapes out of bougainvillea? India needs to expose these countries’ hypocritical stand in the international meetings on the Kashmir issue.
Yours etc.,
TK Nandanan,
Via email
Rains and the blame game
Editor,
The North East monsoon has begun in most of the Indian states. It is pouring cats and dogs in the coastal regions of the South too. Kerala and Tamilnadu has been getting heavy downpour in the past few days. Recently a mere three hours of heavy downpour in the commercial capital of Kerala, Kochi, brought life to a standstill with most of the areas severely inundated, throwing the city’s traffic completely out of gear. The three hour rainfall paralysed life in the city for many hours. A big verbal conflict has also begun with the blame game amongst the corporation, the civic bodies, political biggies and others. Each one is trying to slip off scot free. Whether it is Kochi, Mumbai, Chennai or Kolkata the scenario is the same. Who’s to be blamed? Is it the rain gods? Heavy rain has lashed the cities in the past too but why is such a pathetic scene being witnessed only now? The reasons are many but lack of foresightedness and faulty plans of the local bodies are the main ones.
In most of our cities the drainage systems are built without meticulous planning and these get heavily flooded within minutes of a downpour and the whole area forms a big pool. Very quickly vehicles are inundated in water thereby resulting in heavy traffic jams. The traffic system completely collapses for hours together. As there is no other way in which the water can be drained it remains there for days tearing the surface of the road and creating potholes and craters. These again pose a big threat to two wheelers and autos which often accidently skid into these pits. Silt and waste matter, especially plastic waste, from sewages connected to the drainage, block the flow of water and as they are not checked and cleared before the rains set in.
Aren’t we also responsible for carelessly disposing waste into sewages? And speaking about our MPs and MLAs, it’s really sad that other than their hollow promises of keeping the cities and towns from drowning, nothing much has been done on the ground. Added to this is the lackadaisical attitude of the local authorities which makes things worse. Systematic construction of drainages, meticulous schedule to clean the same and public awareness can definitely lessen the woes that the same public encounters every rainy season.
Yours etc.,
M Pradyu,
Kannur