Shillong,, Aug 28: The Meghalaya College Teachers Association (MCTA) has asked NEHU Vice Chancellor Prof Prabha Shankar Shukla to withdraw the July 12 notification to implement the National Education Policy (NEP) to end the stalemate.
The MCTA described the notification issued by the officer on special duty, college development council, NEHU Debasish Chowdhury on July 12, to the principals of all affiliated colleges for implementation of the NEP as a blatant lie.
The MCTA also questioned the hasty decision to implement the NEP though majority of the colleges are not prepared for it.
“We demand the VC to withdraw the notification with immediate effect. We have served the representation on July 21 and because he has remained silent, we started the ongoing non-cooperation movement from August 1,” MCTA general secretary Dr Airpeace W Rani told reporters on Monday.
He said the teachers of the 22 colleges under the banner of the MCTA are boycotting first semester classes under the NEP and are not undertaking any assignments like setting up of question papers for the first semester courses under the new education policy. However, they continue to teach students of 3rd to 5th semesters under the present course.
“The way forward to end this stalemate according to us is for the VC to withdraw this notification and roll back this NEP from this academic session and go back to the old course. We are on agitation for nearly a month therefore, we request the VC to withdraw this notification and end the stalemate,” Rani said.
When asked on the next course of action by the MCTA if its demand is not heeded by the VC, MCTA president Dr (Ms) BH Buam said, “For that question, we will have to meet as a body and we will not be able to disclose what that would be. We will have a collective decision after a threadbare discussion.”
Whether they would approach the Visitor of the University, Dr Buam however said, “We would not lay everything before this gathering here but there are plans. We are voting on that.“
Stating that the court would be the last resort in its fight against the hasty decision to implement the NEP, the MCTA president said, “…there is the opportunity, the door is there but then we understand that if we have to go to the court, legal matters will take years and by the time this batch of students, where will they be, so that will be if at any point in time it will be the last and very last resort.”
MCTA member Shiv Pradhan said the July 12-notification had claimed that the decision to implement NEP has been taken as per decision of the 110th Academic Council of NEHU and the same has been approved by the Executive Council.
“Now, we challenge that on the basis of the proceedings of the 110th Academic Council. In the said proceedings, not even a single word is mentioned that the decision has been taken. Do you think a meeting is called on the very purpose to implement NEP for 2023-24 and the proceedings will not even mention it? The main agenda which has been discussed and passed according to them will not feature in the proceeding. Hence, it is a blatant lie,” he said.
Former MCTA general secretary Amanda criticised the state government for keeping silent on the issue.
“Why is the government silent? That is the question we would like to ask. If the Chief Minister had stated that the concerns of the MCTA are genuine then why is he silent? If the VC is concerned about the students passing out from this university, why is he silent?” she asked.
She also referred to an advertisement published by the Tura Government College and said, “TGC does not have teachers and they have advertised for both morning and evening shifts for teaching subjects like public speaking, personality development and others. These are courses under NEP and you will have hourly basis teachers coming even in the government colleges so what about the private colleges and government aided colleges, what will they do?”
