NEHU VC Post: Transforming Crisis Into Opportunity

By Rudi V Warjri

I was a member of the three-member committee which was specified to search for a VC for NEHU sometime in 2020 – 2021. A panel of five names was recommended to the Ministry of Education. The Ministry in its own wisdom zeroed in on the current VC, Prof P S Shukla. I feel compelled to write here what the concerned authorities should do before finalizing on the next VC.

The Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India has issued an advertisement inviting applications for appointment of Vice-Chancellor of North-Eastern Hill University. It also stated that the Vice-Chancellor, being the academic as well as administrative head, is expected to be:

• A person possessing the highest level of competence, integrity, morals and institutional commitment.

• A distinguished academician, with a minimum of 10 years’ experience as Professor in a University or 10 years’ experience in reputed research and/or academic administrative organization with proof of having demonstrated academic leadership.

• Preferably not more than 65 years of age as on the closing date of receipt of applications of this advertisement.

• Appointment will be made from a panel of names recommended by a committee constituted under the provisions of the Act of the University. It also mentioned the salary and service conditions.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) had also issued more elaborate guidelines on the Roles and Responsibilities of the Vice-Chancellor. It states that the Vice-Chancellor should:

(a) Provide inspirational and motivational value-based academic and executive leadership to the university through policy formation, operational management, optimization of human resources and concern for environment and sustainability;

(b) Conduct himself/herself with transparency, fairness, honesty, highest degree of ethics and decision making that is in the best interest of the university;

(c) Act as steward of the university’s assets in managing the resources responsibility, optimally, effectively and efficiently for providing a conducive working and learning environment;

(d) Promote the collaborative, shared and consultative work culture in the university, paving way for innovative thinking and ideas;

(e) Endeavour to promote a work culture and ethics that brings about quality, professionalism, satisfaction and service to the nation and society.

(f) Refrain from allowing considerations of caste, creed, religion, race, gender or sex in their professional endeavour.

Prof Shukla has been absent from his duty as VC at NEHU Campus for one and a half years. He discharged his duties from the NEHU Guest House, Guwahati and was forced to remain absent from the NEHU campus because all the apex bodies of the teachers, students, staff etc., were against his continuance. The reasons were primarily because of his failure to fulfil the role and responsibilities of a VC. He was practically declared persona non grata in the University. Technically, however, Prof Shukla’s appointment as VC ends in July 2026.

This issue was raised in Parliament by the two MPs from Meghalaya, (Late) Dr Ricky Andrew J. Syngkon and Saleng A Sangma. While Syngkon sought his immediate sacking, branding him of incompetence and for administrative failure, unethical appointments, neglect of infrastructure, plunging NIRF rankings, and remote interference even while functioning from out of station while drawing full salary, Saleng A Sangma said, “there is really a deep denial of the central fact that there is reluctance by the Government of India to replace Shukla by projecting a false vision and future.”

Prof Shukla’s tenure was marked by several controversies and accusations of nepotism, anti-tribal practices, and mis-management. NEHU suffered administrative decline and its National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF) fell from 59 in 2021 to 136 in 2024. The worst decision was to hastily implement the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 without sufficient consultation with stakeholders. Faculty members of NEHU have written about the University’s failure to capture the national imagination despite being in existence for fifty years.Dwelling further on Prof Shukla’s non-performance as a VC now, would be an exercise in futility. However, it’s important to learn some hard lessons from the sordid episode arising out his failure that has caused immense affliction to NEHU as an institution and which has impacted the lives and education of students and the morale of teachers and staff.

The objective now should be to turn the crisis in NEHU into an opportunity. That can only happen if there is an honest introspection by the Ministry of Education in Delhi about the reasons that has brought NEHU to its present predicament. It should ensure that (a) the next VC possesses besides academic qualifications also the character befitting a VC as elaborated in the UGC guidelines and abide strictly by the guidelines both in letter and spirit and not reduce the guidelines to a farce. (b) The Ministry should judiciously examine the accusations regarding the present VC of being anti tribal. This is particularly critical because NEHU is predominantly an institution based in a tribal area. Hence empathy towards tribals means a job half done for the next VC. c) It should avoid any tendencies to be influenced by or by any kind of nepotism and favouritism in the choice of the VC. Any such imposition means ruining the institution further. d) The ability to comprehend and have insights into the ecosystem in the State and the region especially the diverse and complex sense of identity based on ethnicity, language, faith, culture and other customary practices is paramount.The National Policy on Education 1986 had highlighted Access (Availability) and Equity (Fairness) of Education. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 had rightly stepped up further by emphasizing on Access to Quality Education. The National Education Policy (2020) has also sought to foster critical thinking and problem solving, along with social, ethical and emotional capacities and dispositions.

Nationally, a recent comparative study of school education systems by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)across eight countries highlights India’s “significant under-investment” in education. The report shows that India’s education spending has stagnated between 2.7% and 2.9% of the GDP over the past six years, with no growth, and calls for raising this allocation to 6% of GDP to meet global standards. It provides a detailed analysis of the education systems in these eight countries, spanning both developed and emerging economies. There are just eight Indian universities in the Top 500 in the QS World University Rankings. Enabling this will require an encouraging ecosystem, with greater funding, autonomy, the spirit of tolerance within universities and activities by students/faculty. This has also to be taken into account in the choice of the next VC for NEHU.It is germane to stress that NEHU is located in Shillong which is the hub of education in the entire North East. The strategic criticality of this region is well known. Its connectivity via a 22 Km chicken neck with the mainland mass of India with the rest surrounded by foreign countries needs due acknowledgement. There’s a substantial presence of students from the entire region in NEHU and even foreign students from neighbouring countries. The professionalism and eclectic personality of the VC is crucial in influencing and shaping the thinking of the students that would be in the national interest.

The State Government of Meghalaya also has to play its role given that NEHU is situated in Meghalaya and the majority of the students are from Meghalaya. The future of students from Meghalaya is a matter of critical stake and responsibility for the Government of Meghalaya.

Only then will NEHU be able to live up to its motto of “Rise up and build.” To begin with NEHU should grow among the comity of leading academic institutions in India. Philosophically and poetically, NEHU should be allowed to blossom into an institution that Tagore envisaged, “Where the mind is without fear/And the head is held high.”