The administrative deadlock at the North Bengal University (NBU) — the largest and oldest varsity in north Bengal — is likely to be resolved soon as appointments to key vacant posts are expected in the coming weeks, Anandamay Barman, minister of state for finance and transport, said in Siliguri on Monday.
Barman, who is also the BJP MLA from the Matigara-Naxalbari Assembly seat in Darjeeling district where NBU is located, said he recently met state higher education minister Jagannath Chattopadhyay in Calcutta to discuss the crisis.
“I stressed the immediate need to appoint a vice-chancellor as well as fill other key vacant positions, including the registrar and deans. The higher education minister informed me that the appointment of a permanent vice-chancellor may take another three months due to certain legal complications. However, appointments to other vacant administrative posts, such as registrar, dean and other officials, will be made soon,”
Barman said.
NBU has been grappling with an administrative crisis for several months in the absence of a permanent vice-chancellor and registrar. This has disrupted academic and administrative functioning as many crucial decisions remain pending.
The university has also not held its convocation for nearly eight years, leaving thousands of research scholars who have completed their doctoral studies without their degrees.
A senior faculty member said some service providers have indicated they find it difficult to continue under the prevailing circumstances.
Tourism minister and Siliguri MLA Shankar Ghosh had also taken up the issue with the higher education minister.
Last week, after an administrative meeting in Uttarkanya, the state government’s branch secretariat in Siliguri, Ghosh had said he had received similar assurances that steps would be taken to restore normalcy at the university.
Protection work
Minister Anandamay Barman laid the foundation stone for an embankment project along the Balason river in Matigara block of Siliguri subdivision on Monday.
He said the state has sanctioned around ₹2 crore for the construction of a 650-metre-long embankment to strengthen the riverbank and prevent erosion.
