Imphal, Aug. 5: Students in Manipur are gearing up to launch an agitation to force the N. Biren Singh government to review the newly passed Dhanamanjuri University Bill to include DM College of Teacher Education under the proposed university.
The Assembly passed the Dhanamanjuri University Bill on Thursday and five colleges are proposed to be affiliated to it.
The colleges are DM College of Sciences, DM College of Commerce, DM College of Arts, LMS Law College and Ghanapriya Women's College, all of them in Imphal.
However, the DM College of Teacher Education, which is located on the campus of the DM cluster of colleges, has not been made a part of the proposed university. Exclusion of the teacher training college has sparked a protest among students and teachers.
During a debate on the bill, chief minister and leader of the House N. Biren Singh said the university was to be opened under the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan, which does not allow for more than five colleges under such a university in the Northeast.
He said the scheme would expire this year and if the opportunity to open a new university is lost, it would be a loss for the state. However, once the university is opened, it would be a state university and more colleges could be brought under it, he added.
However, teachers and students of the teacher education college are not convinced. After an attempt to storm the directorate of university and higher education here yesterday, the students are preparing for an "intense" agitation to demand a review of the bill.
"The bill is unacceptable and should be reviewed before it becomes an act. Our college is located along with other DM Colleges and is also the oldest teacher training college in the state. It deserves to be under the new university," Ranita Pangambam, a student of the college, said.
During the erstwhile Okram Ibobi Singh-led Congress government, the Assembly had passed a bill for establishing DM University in September 2016. However, the governor withheld the bill, as it required several corrections and additions.
Manjit Sarangthem, general secretary of the trainees' union of the teacher education college, said the exclusion of the college was "disappointing". He said there was no reason for leaving out the government college from the new university.
All the six colleges are now under Manipur University. The teacher education college was established in 1946 and was named Post Graduate Training College in 1972. The present name was given in 1997. The Masters course in education was started in 2005.
Students said they would protest until the college was brought under the proposed university.
