Hill education meet in Calcutta

Vivek Chhetri, TT, Darjeeling, April 10: The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration today said that the state government had completed the formalities of setting up a School Service Commission and College Service Commission for the GTA area in the hills and that the a note would soon be placed in the state cabinet for its approval.

Roshan Giri, the executive GTA Sabha member in-charge of the education department, speaking over the phone from Calcutta, today said: "We had a meeting with Bengal education minister, Partha Chatterjee at Bikash Bhavan today. We raised the issue of setting up of a separate School Service Commission and College Service Commission for the GTA. The minister told us that the formalities for setting up a separate SSC and CSC have been completed and that a note would be placed before the state cabinet for its final approval."

Confirming Roshan Giri's statement, a senior official of the higher education department said in Calcutta that two committees had been formed to recommend steps on setting up the two bodies for the hills.

"The chairman of the West Bengal College Service Commission, Deepak Kar, is heading one. He will look into the composition of the college service commission for the hills and how it will be different from the existing system. He is expected to submit a report to us at the earliest. After that it will be sent to the cabinet for approval," the official said.

He added that the school education department was carrying out the same process for the hill school service commission.

Giri said: "The minister has assured us that they would adhere by the agreement on the GTA." Giri was referring to the memorandum of agreement for setting up of the GTA. In the MoA, the Centre, state and the Morcha had agreed that a separate SSC and CSC would be set up for the GTA.

The erstwhile Left Front had formed the School Service Commission exclusively for the hill areas in 1999. However, the then Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council had refused to give appointment to candidates who had cleared the SSC (hills) examinations in 2000 and 2002. However, after Subash Ghisingh resigned as the caretaker administrator of the DGHC in 2008, the DGHC then issued appointment letters to those candidates who had passed the earlier examinations.

The SSC (hills), which also had an office in Darjeeling, therefore, remains defunct because of the DGHC's stand. After 2002, the SSC (hills) was winded up in the hills.

The hills have 774 primary schools, six junior high schools, 53 high schools and 65 secondary schools.

"The issue of online admission process in colleges were also discussed in the meeting today. We told the minister that since internet connectivity and electrification in the hills was poor, the online process for admission in colleges should be exempted for the hill areas. The state government has agreed to send a team to the hills," added Giri.

The meeting was also attended by Vivek Kumar, secretary, higher secondary education department and Arnab Roy, secretary, secondary education of the state government. "The other issues raised were regarding employing 515 para teachers and 127 adhoc teachers in various vacancies in the hills and also the creation of 79 posts under the Right to Education. There have been positive assurances on these issues as well," said Giri.