Government colleges and those that receive aid from the state will have to shift their affiliation from the central North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) to the new state varsity, the Capt Williamson Sangma University (CWSU), an intention expressed that has kicked up a storm of protest.
Commissioner and Secretary in the Education Department, Syed Md A Razi, said that the state government has written to the University Grants Commission to start the process to get CWSU recognised by the UGC, what is known as a 2F notification.
Razi said that Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma is personally following up the matter with the UGC and Union Education Minister and the notification should be received “very soon”, the senior civil servant told reporters.
When the notification is received, the shift in affiliation will begin, Razi added. While government and government-aided colleges will have no choice in the matter, private colleges will be able to choose whether to remain affiliated to NEHU or move to the CWSU. However, Razi said that it would be better to have all of Meghalaya’s students under the same system.
It is this that at least two pressure groups – the Khasi Students Union (KSU) and Jaintia Students Union (JSU) – and one minor political party – (KHNAM) – have taken issue with.
Expressing shock over the news, both student unions questioned if the government ever consulted with concerned stakeholders before making such a decision.
In a statement, the JSU said that it does not support this proposal and recommends that the state government seek a consensus from college bodies before making any decisions on affiliation. The government should not impose this affiliation on the colleges.
“While the JSU is not opposed to the state university itself, it believes that the university is still in its infancy and may face administrative challenges. This move could also create inconveniences for colleges located in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills, which comprise around 55 of the 74 colleges in the state. Therefore, the JSU strongly urges the government to refrain from enforcing this affiliation. Instead, the JSU suggests organising a joint meeting with college bodies and student representatives to discuss the matter thoroughly,” it said.
The KSU said that having the state university in Tura would be inconvenient when the bulk of the colleges are in Khasi-Jaintia Hills.
KHNAM, for its part, said that Shillong is the ideal place being the capital of the state and also questioned whether the government had consulted stakeholders.
Meanwhile, Razi said that the Education Department is taking other steps to make the CWSU fully functional in terms of appointment of Vice-Chancellor, constitution of various committees and faculties.
He also said that the government is hopeful that the state university will be functional by next year so that students of the state do not have to sit for Common University Entrance Test (CUET) and the state will not have to seek exemption every time since the state university will not need a CUET score.
The opposition towards CUET was one reason the government, which had hitherto been reluctant to start a state university (with all the financial burdens that would impose on its finances), approved the formation of the CWSU. However, even the lure of being forever exempt from CUET is not enough to swing the KSU, JSU and KHNAM.
