Shillong, Jan 23: The resignation of the Pro VC of North-Eastern Hill University’s (NEHU’s) Shillong campus, Prof Sumarbin Umdor, has not been accepted and he should resume his duties forthwith, Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui said today.
Umdor resigned under pressure from a conglomeration of student and faculty groups in December. They claimed that the continuation of the existing administrative arrangement, led by the under-fire Vice-Chancellor Prof PS Shukla, had failed to restore normalcy at the central varsity. Shukla has been absent from the university for well over a year now but while the atmosphere is not conducive to his return, the Union Ministry of Education appears to be reluctant to formally remove him from his post, especially as his term is set to end in a few months.
The state government has little to no role in the management of NEHU but has looked on with dismay at its ongoing crisis.
Today, Rymbui said that he hopes the Union Ministry of Education will come up with a solution to end the impasse at NEHU.
The minister said that Umdor’s resignation has not been accepted and that he should resume his duties in order to bring back a level of functionality to the institute. The crisis is not only affecting NEHU but the many colleges in the state that are affiliated to it.
“For the welfare of the students and staff of NEHU pending the final decision, it is better for the incumbent Pro Vice-Chancellor to resume his duties,” Rymbui said, adding that he is in talks with all the university’s stakeholders and is also in touch with the central government.
