Protesters reject Nagaland Cabinet decision, vow to continue agitation

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• Members of CTAN and NNQF addressing a press conference at Kohima Press Club office on Monday. (EM Images)

   
  

• KOHIMA — The Combined Technical Association of Nagaland (CTAN) and the Nagaland NET Qualified Forum (NNQF) have rejected the Cabinet decision to shorten the review period regarding the absorption of assistant professors and librarians, opting to resume their agitation outside the Directorate of Higher Education in Kohima starting Tuesday.
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• Addressing the media, CTAN-NNQF representatives stated that their demands, previously assured by the Minister for Higher Education, remain unmet. They also expressed a lack of trust in the committee established by the government to review the matter.

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• “The political elite has fallen on deaf ears to the common people's voice, so we will continue with the agitation," stated NNQF member Videkhono, urging the common people and working class to join their protests.
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• CTAN convener Meshenlo Kath confirmed that discussions with the deputy chief minister and the parliamentary affairs minister failed to yield a resolution, leading to the decision to restart the protest.
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• The specifics of the protest will be determined at a later time. While acknowledging and thanking the Naga Students' Federation for their stance against corruption, Kath clarified that no formal discussions have taken place regarding a joint protest.
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• "Despite the four-day peaceful protest and assurance from the minister concerned to revoke the order and dissolve the committee, there has been no positive action from the government in revoking the said orders. Therefore the protest will continue until the demands are met," the CTAN-NNQF declared in a joint statement.
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• Protesters plan to gather outside the Directorate of Higher Education at 9 am to continue their peaceful demonstration.
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• The CTAN and the NNQF are demanding the immediate revocation of order No. HTE/HE/13-3/2020 (Pt-1) 104 dated December 17th, 2024, which permits the absorption of 147 assistant professors and librarians in government colleges throughout Nagaland.
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• They are also demanding immediate requisition of all posts filled on contract after June 6, 2016. The office memorandum dated June 6, 2016, imposes a ban on contractual appointees.
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• Furthermore, they are calling for the dissolution of the committee formed by the Cabinet on April 21, tasked with reviewing the matter of the 147 absorbed assistant professors and librarians.
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• The CTAN and the NNQF expressed a deep distrust of the government's handling of the situation, with a member stating the committee's constitution is an attempt to dissolve the issue and cover up "illegal acts."
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• They added that it is a "modus operandi” of the government to deviate from the core issue and that the involvement of bureaucratic personnel will not lead to a desirable resolution.
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• "We have lost faith in the confidence of the government," a member stated.
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• The groups clarified that their agitation is not directed against the 147 assistant professors and librarians currently in contractual positions but against the method of their appointment.
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• They emphasised the importance of these positions to ensure the smooth continuation of the academic calendar and appealed for consideration of the students' academic lives.
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• They stressed that their goal is not to disrupt education but to rectify what they perceive as an unjust appointment process. The CTAN and the NNQF have vowed to continue their fight until their demands are met.