Shillong, Nov 6 Students from North Eastern Hill University (NEHU), northeast’s oldest Central varsity, in Meghalaya, continued their indefinite hunger strike for the second day on Wednesday while demanding the removal of the Vice Chancellor and four other top officials.
The academic activities of the prestigious university have been crippled since Tuesday after the North Eastern Hill University Students Union (NEHUSU) launched the agitation demanding the removal of the VC Prabha Shankar Shukla and four other top officials, including registrar Col Omkar Singh (Retd) and deputy registrar Amit Gupta for their alleged “incompetency” to run the varsity.
The Khasi Students Union’s NEHU and the Meghalaya Tribal Teachers' Association also supported the protest.
The agitating students claimed that due to the incompetence of all top varsity officials, the NEHU’s rank has slipped 21 points to 101 in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) ranking.
NEHUSU General Secretary Toniho S Kharsati said the students demanded that all incompetent top officials along with those “illegally” appointed must be removed for the interest of the students and the varsity.
"Since the incumbent VC took charge of the University in 2021, no important academic development has taken place; instead rankings of the important institution have been going down. Incompetent people were appointed in the top position," he told the media.
Kharsati said that the VC, registrar and deputy registrar have a lot to do to improve the overall academic position of the university and to address the grievances of one and all.
NEHUSU President, Sandy Sohtun said that they would continue their protest till their demands are accepted. The non-teaching staff also protested demanding the filling up of posts in the university.
The Non-teaching Staff Association (NEHUNSA) also stopped their official work in protest against the "unprecedented delay” in the recruitment process for the posts that were notified last year.
Vice Chancellor Shukla said that as per UGC norms stipulated process has to be followed for the termination of any university officials.
“If the students feel that I have victimised them in any manner or I reflect any genuine issue of the students then I am ready to face any inquiry by the government,” he told the media and said his doors are always open for any discussion.
“The students or their representative can come in any time,” the VC said and observed that all must work together for the betterment of the student and academic interest.
The University has sanctioned Rs 13 lakh to upgrade the wi-fi network in the university and efforts are on to improve the toilets and other infrastructures.
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