By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Nov 11: The Meghalaya government has recommended the termination of services of North-Eastern Hill University Registrar Col (retd) Omkar Singh and two newly-appointed Deputy Registrars.
Cabinet Minister AL Hek on Monday said he has already written a letter to Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan fully endorsing the views of the Meghalaya Tribal Teachers’ Association which backed the demand of NEHU Students’ Union to terminate the service of the Registrar.
On whether he also asked for the removal of Vice Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla, Hek avoided a direct reply stating that the government has to support the opinion of the people of the state.
Expressing hope that the issues will be resolved at the earliest, Hek said he has also apprised the BJP’s top leadership about the prevailing situation in the university.
Talking about the attack on the VC’s quarter, Hek said it is the duty of the state government to protect him and as such, sent security for him. He asked the students to ensure that they do not indulge in violence while voicing their concerns.
The central government is learnt to be inquiring the matter and it will arrive at a decision after receiving reports from all concerned.
Earlier in the day, the NEHUSU and KSU NEHU Unit wrote a letter to Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma seeking his intervention for the immediate termination of the VC, Registrar, Deputy Registrar (Amit Gupta) and other incompetent teaching staff of the university.
The same letter was forwarded to all the cabinet ministers, KHADC CEM Pyniaid Sing Syiem, JHADC CEM Thombor Shiwat, and GHADC CEM Albinush R Marak.
In their letter, the two student unions said the management of the university under the leadership of the VC has reached an untenable state, with significant and alarming consequences for the academic standards, infrastructure, and reputation of the institution.
They further stated that the decline in the university’s rankings is a stark reflection of the failure of the administration to fulfil its core responsibility, adding that prior to the appointment of Prof Shukla as the Vice Chancellor, NEHU was consistently ranked among the top 60 universities nationally.
“However, under his leadership, the university’s ranking has plummeted to range between 100 and 150, a sharp decline in just three years. This drop in performance is an urgent cause for concern and calls for immediate corrective action,” they stated.
They stated that the VC has consistently failed to address the pressing issues affecting the university.
“His dismissive attitude and failure to take proactive steps to resolve these concerns has created an atmosphere of dissatisfaction and distrust among the students,” they said.
They further stated that the actions and decisions of the current VC have raised serious concerns among the academic community, particularly regarding what appears to be discriminatory and unresponsive behaviour towards the people of Meghalaya.
The NEHUSU and KSU NEHU unit further stated that the future of NEHU requires a leadership that is committed to academic excellence, transparency, and the welfare of its students, and they believe that such leadership can only be ensured through significant administrative changes.