Newmai News Network Imphal | March 9 The All Tribal Students’ Union Manipur (ATSUM) today stated that it will shut-down all the Zonal Education Offices (ZEOs) in the hill districts of Manipur with immediate effect. ATSUM is protesting against the State Government’s failure to decentralize the digitization process of Education department employees’ service books "at the respective ZEO offices and not at the Directorate Education (S) office" in Imphal. "It is very unfortunate and disappointing that the request of ATSUM for an audience with the Minister to have conference on education system in the hill districts and digitization of service book has been in vain," the apex tribal student body of Manipur said. "Appointment has been denied on February 24 and also on March 8, 2018," it added. Taking serious note of the "dilution of power" once enjoyed by the DDOs/ZEOs in the hill districts, ATSUM asserted that the ZEO offices should be upgraded with all the requisite infrastructures and amenities to enable storage of Service Books under the custody of the respective ZEOs if the government is for good governance. While stating that it does not object to digitization, ATSUM maintained that the storage of service books in the Central Records Room of the Directorate of Education (S) “will bring forth chaos and trust deficit among the employees of remote areas. The order, the student body added, “is a scheme to strip the powers and functions of ZEOs". ATSUM also highlighted possible problems pointing out that personnel posted at remote areas would have to spend 3 or 4 days to reach Imphal incurring huge financial expenses just to pen their signatures on the service books. As such, the student body appealed the government to make certain changes by facilitating digitization of service books at the ZEO level "to ensure that there is decentralization". ATSUM cautioned that it will have to intensify its agitation with different forms of agitation in future "if the genuine demand for digitization of service books is not done at hill district ZEO offices".