Nagaland students turns up heat on government over director post, coaching centres and college driver shortage

KOHIMA — The All Nagaland College Students’ Union (ANCSU) has urged the state government not to treat the post of Director, Higher Education, as a “political appointment” and to strictly follow the Nagaland Higher Education Service Rules, 2015.

The rules mandate that the director must be appointed from among additional directors or principals on a merit-cum-seniority basis.

Addressing a press conference in Kohima on Friday, ANCSU president Tenyesinlo Bukh, accompanied by office-bearers Imnawabang Lkr, Dzüzüve Swuro and Kivika Yeptho, said that the union had written to the government on September 4, 2024 asking it to refrain from bypassing service rules.

Despite this, the state continues to run the department under an officiating director, he said.

Bukh clarified that the union is “not against any individual from other cadres” but against the violation of established policy. The current arrangement, he said, undermines the morale of officers within the department and affects the teaching community—ultimately impacting students.

The union demanded the appointment of a full-fledged director strictly as per service rules to ensure effective leadership in a vital sector.

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Pointing to the rapid growth of coaching centres in Nagaland, the ANCSU renewed its call for the government to regulate these institutes.

Bukh said that the union had first submitted a representation in 2021, and again in 2024 and 2025, urging the government to streamline their functioning.

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While acknowledging their role in supporting aspirants, he said that the institutes should be recognised by the state and brought under a regulatory authority. This would allow proper monitoring, ensure quality and enable the government to extend grants where due, he added.

Despite repeated appeals, the government has not acted on the matter, the union lamented.

Shortage of college bus drivers

It also raised concerns over the lack of bus drivers in government colleges, forcing institutions and students to hire private drivers—leading to increased expenses.

The union said that it had written to the government on March 25, 2025, seeking immediate appointment of drivers through proper recruitment procedures.

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Similar shortages exist in polytechnic institutes, where both buses and drivers are insufficient, Bukh said and urged the government to fill the vacancies and expand transport facilities.

Also, the union said that it had submitted a representation on October 24, 2025 highlighting the grievances of diploma students in polytechnics.

It demanded a defined recruitment ratio of 60:40 between engineering degree graduates and diploma holders, particularly for junior engineer posts, to ensure fairness.

It further called for a review of the age-eligibility criteria for NPSC exams. Students entering diploma courses after HSLC are typically 16 and complete the programme by 19—yet are compelled to wait two years before they meet the minimum age requirement, it asserted.

The union urged the government to revise the policy to ensure equal opportunities.

Scholarship nodal cell

According to Bukh, the state Cabinet had decided on June 12, 2019 to establish a scholarship nodal cell, but it remains non-functional. The union reiterated the demand on August 15, 2025 and served a 27-day ultimatum.

Following this, the government convened a meeting on September 10 and adopted a resolution to operationalise the cell.

ANCSU maintained that all scholarship-implementing agencies must now depute an official to the Higher Education department and furnish both hard and soft copies of scholarship guidelines to the nodal cell to ensure smooth and transparent implementation.