SHILLONG, July 23: The President of India, in her capacity as the Visitor of the North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU), has approved the appointment of Prof. Saroj Kanta Barik of the Department of Botany as the officer to take charge of the Vice-Chancellor’s office following the completion of the tenure of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Prabha Shankar Shukla, on July 26.
According to an order issued by the Ministry of Education, Department of Higher Education, on July 22, Prof. Barik, the second senior-most professor of the university, will assume charge of the Vice-Chancellor’s office from July 27 and continue in the role until a new Vice-Chancellor is appointed and assumes office.
The communication, signed by Rajesh Kumar, Under Secretary to the Government of India, was addressed to the Registrar of NEHU.
It informed that the President had approved the proposal to hand over the charge of the Vice-Chancellor to Prof. Barik after the expiry of Prof. Shukla’s term.
Prof. Barik had earlier played a crucial role in ensuring administrative continuity at the university.
On December 19 last year, he agreed to assume charge of the Vice-Chancellor’s office after the Pro Vice-Chancellor resigned, leaving the Shillong headquarters without a functioning head. He had accepted the responsibility following requests from the university’s statutory associations and unions.
Meanwhile, the process of appointing a regular Vice-Chancellor remains pending as the Ministry of Education has yet to appoint the chairman of the search-cum-selection committee.
Sources said the NEHU Executive Council has already nominated two members to the committee, but the selection process cannot begin until the chairman is named by the Ministry.
The Ministry had issued an advertisement on May 20 inviting applications for the post of Vice-Chancellor ahead of the completion of Prof. Shukla’s tenure.
The notification stated that the candidate should be a person of the highest competence, integrity and institutional commitment, possessing at least 10 years of experience as a professor in a university or in a reputed research or academic administrative organisation with proven academic leadership. Applicants should be preferably not above 65 years of age.
