KSU exempts director from entering NEIGRIHMS campus until the union's long-pending demands are met
KSU exempts director from entering NEIGRIHMS campus until the union's long-pending demands are met
Digital Desk: The Khasi Students' Union (KSU) announced on Friday that it will not allow NEIGRIHMS Director Prof Nalin Mehta to access the institute's grounds unless he takes serious action to meet the union's long-standing requests.
KSU general secretary Donald V Thabah expressed disappointment that Prof Mehta had flown to Delhi instead of addressing significant student issues, particularly about the NEIGRIHMS recruiting procedure.
"This clearly shows that Prof Mehta is not serious about resolving the issues plaguing the institute," Thabah remarked. He continued: "We stand firm in our decision: the director will not be allowed entry into NEIGRIHMS until our demands are met."
Thabah criticized Prof. Mehta's decision to leave for Delhi, calling it a disregard for the students' concerns. He also blasted elected officials for being mute on the issue.
"It is intolerable for our elected representatives to turn a blind eye while maintaining their positions. It is their responsibility to advocate for youngsters around who rely on NEIGRIHMS for employment possibilities," he added.
The KSU leader said that the decision to prohibit the director stemmed from the state government's failure to interfere. He said that the government cannot acquit itself by claiming that NEIGRIHMS is a crucial institution.
The KSU has been holding a sit-in demonstration for over 24 hours, claiming that the government has failed to address public concerns regarding NEIGRIHMS and NEHU.
The KSU intends to maintain peaceful protests until its demands are met. The KSU filed a 10-point charter of demands to the NEIGRIHMS authority, focussing on claimed gender disparities in the 2023 nursing officer recruitment through NORCET.
The union referred to this as a "serious oversight" and claimed that NEIGRIHMS had failed to maintain the targeted 20:80 male-to-female recruitment ratio.
The KSU's requests include the reinstatement of the 35-year-old maximum age limit for nursing officer positions, age relaxation for reserved categories, and the suspension of the present recruiting advertisement until all issues are resolved. The union warned that if the demands were not met soon, the discontent would escalate.
