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Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on May 25 said he had raised the “urgent need” for the appointment of a Vice-Chancellor at North-Eastern Hill University during a meeting with Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, amid continuing uncertainty and protests at the central university.

Sharing details of the meeting held on Monday, Sangma said discussions focused on “key priorities for strengthening higher education in Meghalaya and the North East”.

The chief minister said he apprised the Union minister of the state government’s efforts to improve education outcomes and raise Meghalaya’s Performance Grading Index (PGI) score.

These measures include the Structured Pay Framework for ad hoc, SSA and Fourth Teachers, school rationalisation, infrastructure upgrades in government schools, improving SSLC and HSSLC results, support for school dropouts, and implementation of the Meghalaya Teacher Eligibility Test (MTET) to strengthen teacher quality.

Sangma also sought the Centre’s support for the growth of Captain Williamson Sangma State University through the PM-USHA MERU initiative. He further pushed for expedited implementation of pending PMJVK projects at the NEHU Tura campus.

“Raised the urgent need for the appointment of a Vice-Chancellor for NEHU,” Sangma said, while thanking the Union Education Minister for his “support and guidance in building stronger institutions and expanding opportunities for our youth”.

The Centre had earlier initiated the process for appointing a new vice-chancellor for NEHU on May 20. The Ministry of Education invited online applications for the post, with submissions open till June 18.

According to the official notification, the vice-chancellor, as the academic and administrative head of the university, must possess “the highest level of competence, integrity, morals and institutional commitment”. Eligible candidates should have at least 10 years’ experience as a professor or equivalent academic and administrative experience.

The move comes after months of unrest at the Shillong-based university. Current Vice-Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla has largely stayed away from the campus since going on leave in November 2024 following protests by students’ and teachers’ organisations over alleged administrative and governance issues.

Several organisations had also demanded the Centre’s intervention over the functioning of the university administration.