By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Oct 6: The emergency meeting of North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) Academic Council (AC) will be held on Tuesday to finalise the academic calendar of the varsity.
The Joint Action Committee (JAC) leaders, representing NEHUTA, NEHUSU and NEHUNSA who are members of the AC, will attend it.
JAC chairman, Lakhon Kma said the meeting is crucial since they will need to discuss and finalise the academic calendar. Finalising the academic calendar is very important for the faculty members, staff and students, he added.
He further said that they are hoping to take a decision on the extension of the academic session of first semester four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP) under National Education Policy, 2020.
Kma said they would want the classes of first semester to continue till the end of March, followed by the examination from April 1.
“We may start the academic session of the second semester classes by April 15 and end the session by August 14. If we are able to do this, then everything will be back on track,” the JAC chairman said.
He said the emergency meeting is also expected to discuss other important agenda. He said they would have boycotted the meeting if it were a normal meeting of the AC.
Kma refuted all charges of Vice Chancellor Prof Prabha Shankar Shukla against NEHUTA and JAC.
“The allegations made by the VC are misleading. We will counter all the remarks and claims of the VC in detail,” he said.
The JAC chairman said the October 13 deadline for the VC to terminate Rohit Prasad, who was “illegally appointed” as technical officer/senior consultant, still stands. He said Prasad has not attended office since the day they locked his room.
“Presently, we are allowing him to occupy the official quarters on humanitarian ground,” the JAC chairman said.
Earlier, the JAC adopted a resolution declaring that the salary of the VC will be used to cover the salaries paid to Prasad. The resolution was adopted during the JAC’s second general assembly meeting held outside the VC’s office on Friday.
Kma addressed the members and declared that the amount paid to Prasad as salary for the last ten months will be recovered from the VC’s remuneration. The JAC had issued a 10-day deadline to the university to comply with its demands.
Kma insisted that the VC should make Prasad’s termination letter available to the public. He claimed that the VC purposefully deleted all NEHU ordinance laws and regulations from the university’s official website.
Kma warned that if their demands are not met, they will step up their agitation starting from November 13.