DIMAPUR, AUGUST 18 (MExN): In a press conference held at Hotel Saramati today, Samuel Jendai, an elected legislator of Tamenglong 53 constituency said that Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio had responded positively to the issue of affiliation and had reaffirmed that all means would be explored to expedite the affiliation process. Jendai said that Rio has also invited government experts to help resolve this issue.
To adhere to the democratic principles, he also had a meeting with the Leader of the Opposition, Imkong at 11:00 am today. He said that Imkong had conveyed that if the Government of Nagaland puts up the NBSE Act in the House for amendment, he would not oppose it. It is worth mentioning that certain amendments have to be made to the NBSE Act if the Private Schools from Manipur are to be affiliated. He further stated that the team of 5 Naga MLAs from Manipur had come to Nagaland to clear up the confusion and doubts with regard to the affiliation of the private schools from Manipur to the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE).
He expressed his hope that, irrespective of political affiliations, all the Nagas would work for the common good keeping in mind the future of thousands of students’ careers and lives that is at stake here. “Nagas are in the process of nation building and this is only part of that process,” he said. He stated that the Nagas of Manipur are suffering at the hands of the Meiteis, who have forced the introduction of Meitei as a language in the schools syllabus, without taking anything else into consideration. “We are gradually losing our identity,” he said. Touching upon the issue of scholarships, he sought to allay the fears of the Nagas from Nagaland. He said that since scholarships are sourced from the Central government, the affiliation of the schools from Manipur would not be a drain on the finances of the state of Nagaland. He concluded by saying that though the Manipur government has threatened to derecognize the NBSE, it would not materialize as “they can threaten but they cannot put into action.”
For those in the dark about the issue, approximately 163 private schools from the 4 Naga districts of Manipur have expressed their desire and intention of affiliating themselves to the NBSE. On August 3, all the elected Naga legislators had a meeting and resolved to petition Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) with regard to the issue of affiliation to the NBSE. A memorandum had been submitted but a response from the concern department is still awaited.
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