Editor,  

A S Mawphlang’s letter NEHU violates UGC Regulations (ST Oct 28, 2016)has either ulterior motive to mislead the public to defend the wrongs committed by the former Vice Chancellor Prof. AN  Rai or is motivated by jealousy of the teachers who got their legitimate dues from the rectification made by the Executive Council under the chairmanship of the present Vice Chancellor Prof. S K. Srivastava. The write-up is highly questionable on the following reasons:

1. There was no interview for CAS promotion for the teachers in 2012 as mentioned.
2.  So far the Executive Council of NEHU under the present VC has only corrected the irregularities and illegalities of the conduct of interviews in violation of the propriety and the procedure of the Selection Committee in 2013 for fixing the due date of promotion of teachers which is within the jurisdiction of the Screening Committee pertaining to the cases of UGC Regulations 2000 and not in 2010.
3.  UGC Regulations 20(I) (O) quoted by the writer is non-existent.
4.  The writer should refrain from misleading the public on the decision of the NEHU EC the only competent authority which has rectified the wrongs and violations of the then Vice Chancellor under NEHU Statute 13(xii).
5. The other point about reference to Visitor is totally perfidious, as this is not a case of disagreement between NEHU Executive Council and the recommendations made by various selection committees.  Executive council accepted such recommendations with a rider that selection committees cannot decide on the date of promotion, as it constituted two enquiries on the whole matter and came to the conclusion that the then Chairman Prof. AN Rai overstepped the jurisdiction of the selection committees by arbitrarily changing the date of promotion of the teachers. This has affected the academic ecosystem of NEHU and created discrimination and deprivation without following due process.

As past President of NEHUTA, we have initiated the process of correction, which is now at its final stage, when such a misleading letter of a misguided writer appears to besmirch the process of correction.

Yours etc.,

Professor Xavier P. Mao

Ex-President, NEHUTA

Pathetic behaviour of CBI staff

Editor,

Through this column I would like to bring to the notice of the concerned authority the plight of customers of Central Bank of India (CBI), Laban Last Stop Branch. Here the counter clerk does not have the etiquette to deal with customers. I happened to visit this branch a couple of times and earlier this week with one of my relatives who is an elderly person only to be at the receiving end of the clerk who seems to be suffering from some attitude problems. His style of work is against the basic tenets on which this profession runs. He does not care about customers’ age and his manners are obnoxious. Updating a passbook, withdrawing and depositing money and other banking transactions depend upon the mood of this uncouth clerk. This clerk urgently needs some propriety training or else common customers like us would prefer to leave this bank. He is unaware perhaps that he is there because of us. Also, the other counter out of the two in this branch always remains closed. One wonders what is it for. The branch is severely suffering from shortage of staff. It is often seen that only one person is manning the whole branch. Customers coming and going back empty handed for want of service by staff is a sorry sight here. The CBI authorities should take some urgent steps against the clerk and improve the state of affairs of this branch or else the bank will soon shut down!

Yours etc.
A. Lyngdoh
Shillong – 4

Plea for removal of headmaster

Editor,

Apropos the news item, ‘Demand for removal of Headmaster” ( ST Nov 3, 2016) it is shocking to learn that a headmaster has not attended school for 20 years but draws his salary regularly. But this is just the tip of the greater mess in the education scenario in Meghalaya. There are several teachers of pre-primary, primary, upper primary and even secondary schools in many parts of Meghalaya, especially in remote areas, who are regularly absent from school duties, some for ten to fifteen days a month, while others do not attend school at all. Some teachers depute substitutes who do not know the basics of teaching. Others depute proxy teachers by paying them  a quarter of their salaries. This has been going on for many years but the headmasters/ head teachers do nothing because they, themselves indulge in the same modus operandi. The Managing Committees also do nothing because they are under the thumb of the head teachers/ headmasters or because the teachers are their relatives or they are scared of the teachers or they are afraid to report to the DI/IS of schools for fear of repercussions etc.

Now the question is what are these engaged in other than teaching. Some of them are busy with their domestic preoccupations or family obligations. Others are busy with village durbar obligations and look after MNREGS schemes, MP, MLA and MDC schemes, Block schemes, Soil and Water Conservation, PHE schemes etc. Some are busy distributing  MDC, MLA, MP and other Block schemes. Others are busy with political organisations and still others are busy with contract works or other businesses like coal and limestone export, or, selling (products) policies for Insurance Companies. The situation is pathetic!

Again, the question is how do they dare to violate their service conduct rules with impunity and who is supposed to stop all these irregularities and illegalities? The reason is because there is no authority to supervise the schools since the Managing Committees, the Sub-Inspectors (SIs), the Deputy Inspectors (DIs) and the Inspectors of Schools (ISs) have allowed this mess to take place. It is clear that no inspection takes place. Otherwise how do these ills keep happening in and why should the salaries of school teachers who remained absent for such a long time be released? Another reason why these things are happening is because the Government from the Minister down to the level of the Commissioner, Secretary and Director have done precious little during the last 44 years to ensure that such things do not happen.

Ms. Deborah Marak, who was recently entrusted with Elementary and Mass Education Department has already found out these irregularities in the functioning of the education system in her short tenure, while visiting schools. She is trying to streamline and correct these irregularities with the co-operation of the officers but she has only one year to set things right before the next general elections scheduled in February- March, 2018. Can she clean up the mess?

Yours etc.,

Philip Marweiñ,

Shillong-2.