SHILLONG, Oct 17: The unresolved recruitment of nursing officers at the North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) could be taken up at the institute’s Governing Council meeting tentatively on October 27.
Union Health and Family Welfare Minister, J.P. Nadda, is expected to chair the meeting.
NEIGRIHMS Director Nalin Mehta said concerns raised by local pressure groups about the roster system were resolved partially after discussions with the institute’s administration, and certain other matters were referred to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for clarification.
However, demands for an 80:20 female-to-male ratio in nursing officer recruitment, age relaxation, changes in reservation percentages and the conduct of examinations in Shillong are expected to be considered by the Governing Council.
On the demand for an 80:20 female-male ratio, Mehta said such an arrangement was followed by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, which comprises institutions of national importance, a category to which NEIGRIHMS does not belong.
“No Central government institution can have reservation based on sex, and we are a Central government institute,” he said. He also disputed media reports claiming that a Central government institution in Manipur followed the 80:20 ratio.
Clarifying the recruitment procedure, Mehta said the institute communicates the number of vacant posts, while the recruitment examination is conducted by an external agency in accordance with established rules and procedures.
He said Meghalaya lacks the capacity to accommodate all candidates appearing for an examination of this scale, as well as agencies equipped to conduct such a large-scale recruitment exercise. He pointed out that more than 12,000 candidates had applied for the previous recruitment examination, necessitating the use of computer-based test centres across multiple states to conduct the national-level examination.
Mehta emphasised that recruitment to all other posts at NEIGRIHMS, including those of store officers and accounts personnel, must also adhere to Central government rules and procedures.
He said he would abide by the decisions taken by the Governing Council in the above matters, adding that the issues had been included in the agenda for the forthcoming meeting.
Commenting on the growing patient footfall at NEIGRIHMS over the past few years, Mehta commended the institute’s faculty members, resident doctors, nurses and technicians for their dedication and hard work despite staff shortages. He said the institute was increasingly attracting patients not only from across the Northeast but also from neighbouring countries, including Bangladesh and Myanmar.