Manipur News

KANGPOKPI, November 4: A democratic and peaceful rally of various private school students within Sadar Hills was organized here today to press forward the demand for revocation of a State cabinet resolution on language issue.

The rally was organized by Sadar Hills Private Schools’ Association (SHIPS) as per the executive meeting resolution of Hill District’s Recognized Private Schools Association (HIDIPSAM) to lodge their discontentment over the alleged insensitivity of BOSEM towards the grievances of the Hill district recognized private schools and draw the attention of Chief Minister to immediately addresses the various grievances of hill recognized private schools in the State.

Students from various private schools within Sadar Hills congregated this morning at around 10:30 am at Brig. Thomas Ground, Kangpokpi for the democratic and peaceful rally.

The rally began at around 11 am from Brig. Thomas Ground and proceeded towards ZEO office via Autonomous District Council, Sadar Hills and further advance towards ADC, Complex and submitted a memorandum to SDC (HQ) to be forwarded to Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh and later culminated at Brig. Thomas Ground.

The rallyists holds placards which reads, “BOSEM change your system”, “Don’t trample our rights”, “Retain Additional Language”, “Don’t impose language”, “Give us free choice of subjects”, “We don’t want Meitei Mayek”, “Make education a free zone”, “Appoint regular Chairman of BOSEM”, “ Separate Board for the Hills”, “Respect tribal rights”, “Resign Education Minister”, etc.

SHIPS general secretary, NG Haokip said that scrapping of Additional English from the syllabus is a mistake on the part of the State government since it will contemplate on imposing of two or more languages to a student while adding that, “When it is very difficult to learn two languages learning many languages will be a burden on the students”.

Even when the Government cannot provide language teachers to Government schools, how can private schools manage or employ language teachers in all language subjects? asked NG. Haokip and added that there are more than 32 tribes in Manipur and only few of them have textbooks.

He also lamented that until the State government create a separate Hill Board exclusively for the hill districts or bifurcate BOSEM into Hill and Valley section the hill students will extremely suffers on various issues.

Meanwhile, SHIPS memorandum said that hill districts school have continuously highlighted the issue of Additional English and demanded the subject to remain status-quo like CBSE and other State Boards due to numerous setbacks and disadvantages of scrapping Additional English and rendering the students to take their mother tongue or Manipuri.

It is impossible for a private school or even a Government run school to appoint language/mother tongue(MIL) teachers for all subjects and also for other states languages since more than 13 different communities from all over the state coupled with students from neighbouring state like Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, etc comes to study in the private schools in the hill districts, the memorandum claimed.

It further said that making Meitei Mayek compulsory in the Board’s syllabus is viewed as an agenda to propagate language of a particular community in the name of education, which the Hill District Recognized Private Schools Association will never allow to happen.

While Meitei Mayek is open to all students, students of recognized tribal languages are restricted from taking language subjects of their choice said SHIPS memorandum and added that student of recognized tribal languages shall be given freedom to choose from any of the recognized languages including Additional English.

It also alleged that BOSEM permits transfer of students from hill to the valley schools while transfers of students from valley schools to hills schools are restricted.

Apart from other various misery hill districts recognized schools also continuously face numerous hardships in transacting official works in the BOSEM office even for a minor issue and the principals or heads of the schools have to spend in terms of thousands of rupees for travelling depending on the distance in a volatile situation in the state, it further alleged.

Therefore, we demand creation of a separate Hill Board exclusively for the hill districts or immediate bifurcation of the BOSEM into Hill and valley sections and immediate appointment of more tribal to make the institution proportionately represented and issues handled more efficiently, it added.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/private-schools-in-hill-districts-rally-against-deletion-of-additional-english/

IMPHAL, November 4: Reiterating its long standing demand for the creation and declaration of the ‘Tongjeimarin District’ in the middle south west of the State, the Tongjei Marin District Demand Committee (TDDC) has asserted that the proposed district to be named after the famous old Cachar Road and first life line known as ‘Tongjeimarin’ has attracted support from all in view of the genuine objective to strengthen the State’s integrity and development.

A statement of TDCC reminded that the demand was mooted since decades ago and public view had been invited through media in 1990s during the regime of the then Chief Minister RK Ranbir Singh and after long struggle and public mobilization, the first ever memorandum for the grant of Tongjeimarin District was submitted to W Nipamacha Singh on July 11, 1998 with a sketch map of the proposed district of 951 sq km and 75, 000 population (150 villages).

It demanded that the Tongjeimarin District be bounded by Lower Lukhambi (NH-37) in Tamenglong district in the north, Tuangtu and Taiphai (Thalon) Nungsai Khullen, Chothe Munpi of Henglep and Bijang of Churachandpur district in the south, Keithelmanbi and Chinikon, Saitu A/C of Sadar Hills, Senapati district in the east and Gularthol Police Station and Kaiphundai, Taosem Sub-Division, Tamenglong district in the west.

Stating that the committee has met different leaders and voluntary organizations recently to mobilize together for the movement on the demand, the TDDC in the statement said during the consultative meeting held on October 21 last at Langol Laimanai, leaders of the committee decided to convene a public meeting at Khoupum Valley and Noney areas to revamp the future course of action programme including the expansion of the committee.

The TDDC appealed to all to extend co-operation and support to the demand for the sake of speedy growth and integrity in this falling State from communal ambiguity and trust deficit.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/tddc-sticks-to-tongjeimarin-district-demand/

Chandel, November 4: Chandel District Private Schools Association organized a Protest Rally against deleting Additional English from the syllabus of Board of Secondary Education, Manipur (BOSEM) at District Headquarters today.

The rally commenced from Maha Union Government Higher Secondary School’s Ground and proceeded toward DC Office Complex where a memorandum address to the Chief Minister of state was handed over to S. Sambhunath Singh, ADC Chandel.

Students from different schools of the district took part in the rally by holding several placards inscribed with “Revoke Cabinet decision on deletion of Additional English, No language imposition, appoint a regular chairman for BOSEM, Make Education a Free zone, etc.

Speaking at the sideline, Reverend RD Joykumar Anal, president of Chandel District Private Schools Association told that the rally was organized in protest against the deletion of Additional English from the BOSEM syllabus. And since the BOSEM started implementing the 3 tier language policy, the Hill Districts Schools have been continuously demanding the issue of Additional English to remain status quo like other state Board and CBSE, he added.

Rev. Joykumar further maintained that it is impossible for schools authorities to appoint language teachers of each community as many students from different communities were enrolled in the School. As such, the Additional English subject should not be deleted from the BOSEM Syllabus rather it should remained status quo so that students from minority communities who doesn’t have text books in their own dialect can opt for it, he added.

While demanding immediate appointment of BOSEM Chairman not below the rank of IAS Officer and more tribal staff, the association’s president also urged the State Government for creation of a separate Board exclusive for Hill Districts or bifurcation of the BOSEM into Hill and Valley section.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2015/11/chandel-joins-protest-against-additional-english-deletion/