Imtisela Ao
Recently, admission has been granted to more than 3665 students from Manipur under the Nagaland Board of School Education on ‘humanitarian grounds’. Today, precedence has already been set in the HSLC level for the Nagas from Manipur. Tomorrow if Nagas from Assam, Arunachal, and Burma also demand the same privilege, what will become of our own young generation? Competition is stiff, and many students from less privileged backgrounds in Nagaland are struggling to keep up with acute problems of unemployment. In such a situation, how are we expected to understand this illogical, unheard of mass migration? Surely, there are better and more permanent solutions available even for the students from Manipur caught up in the middle of this political debacle.
If in the Year 2006 the no of students admitted through NBSE is 3665+ then even by conservative estimates in 3 years time, we will be having 10,000+ students in the State of Nagaland, obviously hopeful for employment in some quarters, especially the Government services.
Post Matric Scholarship: Post Matric students from Manipur admitted in schools under NBSE, naturally, would also demand scholarships from the Nagaland Government. This is despite the many problems our own students undergo with the issue of scholarships in Nagaland.
Science stream: The Science students of Nagaland hopeful in getting admission to Medical and Engineering Colleges through Joint Entrance Exams; some even appearing 2 to 3 times may be forced to share the limited seats (unless you have a Minister, as your father) with the students from Manipur admitted under NBSE.
Arts Stream: After Degree Courses under Nagaland University, most students sit for the NPSC exams. This would be another stage where a pandemonium would break out. Already, hundreds of students from backward tribes in Nagaland wait out their own turns because of the rotation of seats in the backward quota. They just don’t have enough opportunities. Now, would the general public agree to this sharing of seats either in the General Quota or the Backward Quota?
It is clear that the decisions made now would have repercussions for years. The continuation of this policy and issue needs to be debated and discussed, and solved by all the common people in Nagaland because it concerns us all. Many parents in rural areas may not even grasp the magnitude of the problem facing their children. Our silence in this issue will prove costly for thousands of students in Nagaland who will wake up one day to see their inheritance sold out, by their own caretakers.
