The Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry has instructed RIMS authority not to take any decision regarding reservation policy in haste and wait for instructions from the ministry.
In a letter to the director, RIMS, the ministry conveyed that the matter of reservation policy for Group 'C' and 'D' posts is already under examination by the ministry in the light of DoPT guidelines.
The letter from the ministry also asked for details especially regarding the tripartite agreement signed on April 3.
Meanwhile, Director of Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) professor H Priyosakhi Devi has appealed to All Tribal Students’ Union Manipur (ATSUM) to call off the 12-hour bandh (total shutdown) in all hill districts on April 24.
ATSUM imposed the 12-hour total shutdown on April 24 (from 6 AM to 6 PM) in all hill districts of Manipur against the non-implementation of the tripartite Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed on April 3, 2023, between ATSUM, RIMS and the Manipur government. ATSUM also demanded befitting legal actions against the erring RIMS authority.
Related: RIMS Recruitment: ATSUM firm on April 24 total shutdown
Speaking to media at RIMS, Imphal on Sunday, RIMS director H Priyosakhi stated that RIMS had no authority in implementing a reservation policy at the institute. The union ministry finalises the reservation policy and guidelines, she added.
“As RIMS is a central institution, the regulations and criteria of the reservation policy are finalised by the union ministry,” she said.
Priyosakhi further informed that RIMS authority had reached out to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to initiate appropriate swift measures regarding the massive outcry against the reservation policy.
She pointed out that the ministry had initiated necessary works to squeeze out an amicable solution to the issue.
“Everything will be done within the next few days; since the process is lengthy the ministry will take a few more days to map out the final solution,” she added.
As such Priyosakhi further urged ATSUM to push back the shutdown for a few days and cooperate with the authorities concerned in working out a feasible solution.
Meanwhile, six valley-based student bodies had also appealed to ATSUM to call off the 12-hour state-wide shutdown on April 24. In a release, the six student bodies urged ATSUM to refrain from the shutdown in the interests of the public.
It may be mentioned that several tribal students body namely- Tangkhul Katamnao Shaklong, Zomi Students’ Federation, Kuki Students’ Organisation among others had also extended their support to the state-wide shutdown imposed by ATSUM.
It may be mentioned that ATSUM had imposed a 12-hour total shutdown in all hill districts of Manipur on April 24, 2023 against RIMS authority's alleged failure to rectify the reservation discrepancies and failure to nullify the LDC result.
According to the ATSUM, RIMS authority had deliberately feigned ignorance of the DoPT's OM for a reservation quantum of 34 per cent for ST since 2005 and the tribal people have been deprived of their rightful share in every job recruitment at RIMS ever since.
