By Nongmaithem Kishorchand
It happened before, and it happened again. The recent Cabinet approval for regularization of 418 Part-Time Government College Lecturers and 714 Contract Lecturers of Higher Secondary School as ‘Assistant Professors’ once again exposed the Manipur Government’s thoughtless and insensitive handling of the already depleted state of higher education in Manipur. Beyond expectation, the Cabinet’s decision and plea of 9th May was compiled in the Governor’s precipitous proclamation the next day on 10th May 2016.
In another episode last year, the Manipur Public Service Commission (MPSC) also exhibited a felonious infringement on the recruitment of 280 Assistant Professors to fill the vacancies in 28 Government Colleges of Manipur. From the notification of advertisement till the final selection of candidates for interview, the Commission carried out several discrepancies which infringed the recruitment rules and guidelines laid down by the UGC and HRD.
In both the cases, the minimum standard recruitment guidelines and established recruitment norms practice by various universities and colleges in India were not followed. The entire selection process and the manner in which Manipur Government and the MPSC conducted were exceptionally awful. So I prefer to call them ‘Pastime’ Lecturers rather than Part-Time because more than 90 percent of them regularized as ‘Assistant Professors’ neither has/had NET/SET which is the minimum eligibility requisite nor the credibility and competence to perform as Assistant Professors.
Such travestied actions/decision of the Govt is nauseating, not only because it gives a heavy jolt to thousands of competent and committed candidates who wish to take teaching as a career by painstakingly earned their MPhil/PhD degrees and cleared NET/SLET but also going to hamper the quality of education and put the very idea of education itself in peril.
In every civilized society, ensuring quality education, precisely higher education is fundamental to advance the society further. But we all know that, higher education in Manipur has never been in good health. Except one or two colleges in the Imphal Valley, none other Government Colleges is able to deliver its functions now. As a result, many students like myself had to leave the state in search of decent education to other states and metropolitan cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata etc. This has given several parents hard time and faced the burdens of feeding us and supplying our demands.
As for now, let’s put these unfairnesses and illegalities of the Govt aside, these are quite normal in Manipur where every public profession has a price tag. What is more depressing than surprising to me is the conspicuous silence of the so-called intellectuals or academics in institutes of higher learning particularly in Manipur University. Because, it is usually the intelligentsia, academics and university community who stood at the forefront in protecting the integrity of higher learning. Universities are meant to be a space for the ‘production of knowledge’ where different idea germinates, flourishes and produce through the various intellectual exercises of debates and discussions, challenging and dissenting various perspectives, etc. Therefore, universities must have the atmosphere to conduct free and fair research to produce innovative thinking. That way academic knowledge contributes to the transformations of the society, and indeed leading towards the right direction.
However, a visit to MU tells a different story. It is unique in many ways; perhaps it’s the only university in the world which has a military camp inside the campus. Even under the international law, the Law of War prohibits transgression over academic spaces by military personals. It is not acceptable and justifiable, even as a wartime conduct. But here, you’ll face a check-post at the entry gate where Kalashnikov will ask your details, scan your IDs, if you are not an enrolled student of MU and have a vehicle, then the first thing to do is parked the vehicle somewhere on the roadside at your own risk, and then request them explaining the reason for your visit. You can only enter the campus after getting his nod. Everybody, including students, professors or any other officials, except the military residents of the university have to obey this rule. Otherwise, you’re just inviting trouble.
Indeed, the functioning of Manipur University reflects the state of higher education in the Manipur. It also reflects the manner in which the idea of a ‘university’ and for that matter the idea of ‘higher learning’ is understood. So there is no ‘university’ inside the Manipur University. MU is actually a military-varsity—an armed guarded space where impartation of certain ‘chosen’ knowledge and circulation of that ‘imparted’ knowledge occurs. What we see is perhaps the best example of Foucaultian “Panopticon”—the tower of surveillance. As Foucault said, “Knowledge is power”. What’s happening inside the walls of Manipur University is the manifestation of power relations, where knowledge linked to power not only assumes the authority of the ‘truth’ but also transcends the power to make it true. In other words, the hegemonic domination of the state over people is well preserved through exercising and displaying the ‘power of knowledge’, and used it to regulate and conduct the affairs of academia. In such environment free thinking is merely a ‘virtual’ dream.
Despite these malaise MU also has had its share in the mockery. Bribery nepotism, partiality has never been a secret in Manipur University. Any reality check of faculty recruitment will show various illegalities and gross violations of recruitment norms. Power, money and connection, but not merit and competence have greater possibility and better chance to get into teaching positions. I can cite many cases on which many prospective candidates despite holding MPhil/PhD degrees and possessing all merit and credibility of teaching/research experiences, academic publications, were not even called for interview depriving their right to prove themselves, whereas, young freshers with just an M.A degree without having any teaching/research experiences or any academic outputs were selected for the post of Assistant Professors. In most cases, the selected candidates were either their own students or cognates who carry certain loyalty or lineage. Imagine, how these fresh post-graduates are going to teach master level students and guide research scholars!!
Such lopsided, unfair, ill-conceived judgments of these pseudo-academics not only hampered and demoralize the credible candidates, but also destroy the future of higher education in the state. There is no transparency, accountability and integrity at every stage right from the notification of advertisement to criteria formulations, screening of candidates up to its final declaration of results. Several exclusionary tactics were meted out in the way how eligibility criteria were framed. ‘Ethnic’ and ‘urban’ cronyism has always been played out in recruitment of teachers by violating the constitutionally mandated reservation norms.
According to a data compiled by Manipur University Tribal Students Union (MUTSU) there are 70 Professors in the various schools of MU, none of them from the ST category. There are 40 Associate Professors, none of whom are from ST. And out of 61 Assistant Professors, 10 are from ST out of which four were selected under unreserved pool. The figure is not available for SCs and OBCs since MU has not implemented it and hide the roster from public purview. But surely it will be disgusting. Despite instructions from the UGC (D.O.No.F.I-8/2014 (SCT) of 7th June, 2014) to the MU, to strictly implement the reservation policy for SCs, STs, & OBCs and Persons with Disabilities in teaching and Non-teaching positions and display the updated roster on the university’s web site, MU has neither implemented nor displayed it till now. Hence, I looked into the MU’s website just to catch a glimpse of faculty composition, but surprisingly found out another uniqueness—the only central university which doesn’t show its faculty lists.
That’s the academic integrity at MU. But so far, no initiative which can either ascribe meaningful or visionary has come up from the academic community against such gross violation of academic ethics, morality and principles. With all these examples of unprofessional conduct on the part of these academics, isn’t it miserably ‘unfit’ to call them as ‘academics’ or ‘intellectuals’? They might be academically bright, smart and sharp, but I think, they’re intellectually blind and ignorant as well, neither ably protect the sanctity nor capably question the militarization of academic space. Their wile deafness to social and political realities is again aggravated by academic dysfunction and professional incumbency.
In this situation, is it pertinent and logically relevant enough to talk about ‘quality education’? Let’s not forget quality education requires qualified teachers as well. And to cultivate an academic environment you need a versatile and committed teachers not these under qualified and incompetent ones. Regrettably, as the government has already decided for regularization, the next twenty-thirty years are likely to be a misfortune for our students. At this juncture, will the paralyzed higher education able to walk upright again in Manipur? I believe, only hope remains.
(Nongmaithem Kishorchand is a Doctoral Researcher at the School of International Studies, JNU and can be contacted at: kishornong@gmail.com).