Edu dept drops freeze order, calls new meeting; Guv objects
RAH BHAWAN ASKS VCS ‘NOT TO LEAVE HEADQUARTERS WITHOUT NOD IN WRITING OR THROUGH PHONE FROM THE COMPETENT AUTHORITY’
Bihar’s department of education on Wednesday withdrew its February 28 order freezing all bank accounts of the universities, but called another meeting on March 9, to be chaired by additional chief secretary K K Pathak wherein all vice chancellors, registrars and examination controllers are expected to participate with their reports.
“The order is being withdrawn with immediate effect in anticipation of the participation of university authorities in the March 9 meeting, which will review the status of backlog exams and schedule of ongoing exams,” deputy secretary (higher education) Deepak Kumar Singh has written to all the universities.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the letter, seen by HT, has also been marked to the banks concerned.
However, within hours of the department’s letter, the Governor
shot off a letter to all the VCs “not to leave headquarters without permission in writing or through phone from the competent authority”.
“The Chancellor is the competent authority for VCs. For registrars, exam controllers and other officials, the VC is the competent authority. Nobody
should leave headquarters without permission from competent authority. If a VC leaves, he will hand over charge to the P-VC and if the P-VC is not there to the senior most professor for day to day work. The verbatim compliance of the order be ensured,” said a letter issued by Robert L Chongthu, principal secretary to the Governor.
Taking exception to freeze order, which was issued after the VCs and other university officials, under directions from the Governor, skipped a meeting called by the education department, the Raj Bhawan had on Sunday written to all the banks as well as the universities that the February 28 order of the education department secretary had been cancelled by the Governor, who is the vice chancellor of the state universities.
The education department and the Raj Bhawan in Bihar have been engaged in a turf war for some time now.