ATSUM hails ST Bill 2014, warns IMPHAL, Mar 4: Lauding the state government of Manipur on one hand for taking up steps towards its demands and threatening to start agitation if other demands are not addressed, the All Tribal Students’ Union Manipur (ATSUM) said the state government is yet to take up many tribal issues. Announcing to launch intense agitations from March 15 under the code name ROTO (Reckoning of the Others), if the state government fails to address their grievances, Muan Tombing, president ATSUM lauded deputy chief minister Gaikhangam for his role in the passing of a bill in the assembly session yesterday. ATSUM has lauded the government of Manipur, especially deputy chief minister, Gaikhangam for the initiative taken in connection with the Manipur State Commission for the Scheduled Tribes Bill, 2014 and the subsequent passing of the bill on the final sitting on March 3. But the tribal student body is perturbed by the report in one of the English local dailies stating that the bill was passed just for namesake. According to ATSUM, the draft proposal emcompasses 371-C of the Indian Constitution and its subsequent order of the then President of India V. V. Giri on June 20, 1972. However, if such powers are not incorporated in the said Scheduled Tribe (ST) Commission or without the least autonomy, the student body will be compelled to denounce the bill, ATSUM stated. In case of the inadvertent mistake committed by the reporter or the editor of the paper, corrigendum should be given to avoid confusion of the readers, the student body demanded. ATSUM also extended its gratitude to the government of the state for relaxing the upper age limit by 8 years i.e from 38 years for the General Category, 41 for OBC and 43 years for SC/ST category on a permanent basis for appearing in the recruitment examinations conducted by the state. The student body also reminds the government to ascertain the number of backlog posts and serve a notification for a special recruitment drive for ST at the earliest, as agreed upon by the chief minister of the state, O. Ibobi along with his cabinet colleagues. On the otherhand, the student body asserted that regularization of contract teachers and higher secondary lecturers should be done as assured before the commencement of the academic session, especially higher secondary schools. Stressing on the ground realities of present educational institutions in the hills, with only 17 regular lecturers executing the 14 higher secondary schools which on calculation reflects only 1-2 lecturers per school reveals the negligence of the Government towards the hill people in particular and the state as a whole. Recalling the words of the Education minister during an oath of secrecy, his advocacy to bridge up the loopholes in the Education department is still far-fetched, Tombing added. Due to this fact, the contract lecturers with meager salary are manning the educational institutions without proper faculties, the president added while urging the concerned authority to materialize the promises of regularizing the contract lecturers in due course of time. The student body has also urged for providing effective health care to rural population, as it is imperative to invoke the power conferred by the article 309 of the Indian Constitution in MHS to enable medical professionals to avail the opportunity according to their seniority lists. To help promote targeted citizens, the student body has also demanded the government to properly monitor the Tribal Sub-Plan. ~TSE
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 14:42:12 +0000
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