The Education Cell of the Khasi Students’ Union (KSU) has sought inclusion of Schedule Tribe students to be part of the Dr. Ambedkar Centre for Excellence ((DACE) in the North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) for them to gain access to free quality coaching facilities for civil services examinations.
DACE was set up by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in 31 central universities across the country, including NEHU, to empower Scheduled Caste students in competitive exams by providing the best and free coaching facilities.
To push through with the demand, the union today wrote to Union Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment, A. Narayanswamy urging him to permit inclusion of ST candidates to be part of the DACE in order to guarantee special opportunity for them to benefit from the centre.
The KSU said there is a need for inclusion of the ST students at the centre since Meghalaya lacks resources and assistance to provide high quality coaching facilities. They said that it is due to lack of coaching facilities that since 2013 there has not been a single IAS/ IPS officers from the ST community in the State.
The union also referred to a representation they had sent to the NEHU vice chancellor as well as a letter from the Nodal Officer of DACE in the university to the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre seeking permission to allow the inclusion of OBC and ST candidates, since there are only 30 SC applicants who appeared and qualified into DACE-NEHU.
However, till date no approval has been grant for such inclusion of ST and OBC into DACE, the union added.
