Meghalaya Cabinet Minister and MDA 2.0 government spokesperson, Paul Lyngdoh, has asked the agitating students of North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) to submit the internal report prepared by the North Eastern Hill University Students’ Union (NEHUSU) detailing the university’s state of affairs. Lyngdoh assured the students that he would review the report, discuss its findings with Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, and raise each of their concerns with the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Lyngdoh, on Tuesday met with the agitating students of North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) as their hunger strike reached its 15th day.
Talking to Mediapersons, Lyngdoh, while referring to the prevailing situation at NEHU said, “Rapid slide of NEHU because of the failure of administration.”
“In short, the NEHU students Union has now prepared an internal report on the state of affairs within the university, I will go through this report and discuss it with the honorable chief minister and we will also flag those concerns with the HRD Ministry in Delhi. Number two is we would also like to see that the members of the probe committee which has now been notified, should personally visit the university. It is one of the jewels of the education system in the country and it should not be allowed to go to sea,” He said.
Highlighting the unique challenges faced by the central university, Lyngdoh stated, “You see, this is a central university, and the mandate of the Vice Chancellor is to lead from the front. The state government has absolutely no role in the administration of NEHU, but in the situation that prevails today, this calls for intervention by the state government. This is why I have assured the hunger strikers that we will take up, point by point, all the issues flagged by them, and these will be brought to the notice of the Ministry of Human Resources Development.”
Lyngdoh further assured the students that their report would be prioritized. “As soon as I receive a copy of the internal report, I will share it with the Chief Minister. It may be in a couple of days or so,” he added.
When asked whether he had requested the students to end their protest, Lyngdoh clarified, “No, that’s an internal matter. They have briefed me that they are convening a general meeting in a day or two, and that meeting will take the appropriate decision in that regard.”