In view of the class 11 admission chaos in Tuensang, the Deputy Commissioner of Tuensang, Lithrongla Tongpi Rutsa along with Sub Divisional Officer (Civil) Sentilong Ozukum had on Wednesday visited the only two government run higher secondary schools in the town.
During their visit, the DC and the SDO inspected both GHSS Tuensang and Thangjam and met with the heads of the institutions to discuss how to go about the issue and measures that should be taken.
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The Chang Wedoshi Setshang (Chang Students’ Union) has earlier put the admissions process to class 11 on halt until the Department of School Education provides an alternative arrangement to accommodate all students seeking admission. CWS had mentioned in its press release that around 780 students had applied for admission in the two government higher secondary schools while the maximum capacity for both schools put together was around 370.
DC Lithrongla Tongpi Rutsa at GHSS Thangjam on 7 June 2023
Imkongsenla, Principal, GHSS Thangjam informed that the school has received around 333 online applicants for admission to class 11, but the sitting capacity is 200. She also mentioned that till now 130 students have been admitted to the school. The Principal asserted that being an educational institution, they should not turn away qualified students who want to study but regretted that the ratio needs to be maintained so that the students get quality education.
She mentioned that the school was already suffering from a shortage of teachers, not only in the higher secondary section but also in the lower sections. Imkongsenla also pointed out insufficient classrooms to accommodate more students. The margin does not add up, she said.
Imkongsenla, Principal, GHSS Thangjam
Complementing the Principal, Nasen Monyu, Post Graduate Teacher, GHSS Thangjam also shared that being the lone English teacher in the secondary level, he takes classes for both arts and commerce sections. As such, he regrets that because of the additional workload where one teacher is doing the work of two or three teachers, the faculty is unable to give “quality education” to the students.
Sunil Thakur, Senior Principal, GHSS Tuensang expressed that if there is a reliever in the form of new higher secondary in Tuensang it would solve the problem. He mentioned that with the increase in the number of students passing HSLC examination, the school has received around 327 applicants for arts and 108 for science when its maximum capacity is 220 for arts and 55 for science.
Sunil Thakur, Senior Principal, GHSS Tuensang
The Principal asserted that according to the government’s norms and guidelines, the preference for new admission in the school should be given to students who had passed out from the same school, then the outpost government schools and so on. Thakur iterated shortage of manpower in the school as the biggest challenge. He rued that when a teacher is transferred, most of the time there is no one to relieve that post which adds to the woes of the school.
Thakur stated that he and the faculty of GHSS Tuensang are ready to take in more students to resolve the situation and that they had conveyed their willingness to both the district administration as well as CWS.
Langasomba Chang, vice president, Chang Wedoshi Setshang
Langasomba Chang, vice president, CWS, stressed for permanent solution to the crisis which has become an annual affair. He opined that a new institution should be a priority matter for the government. Mentioning how in July 2022 CWS had to build a classroom at GHSS Thangjam to accommodate class 11 students, Langasomba said that it is the duty of the government to look into the grievances of the students as well as the schools.
CWS has appealed for upgradation of Government High School, Hakushang into Government Higher Secondary School, Hakushang which was approved in District Planning and Development Board meeting on 16 March 2023.
Khangyang Chang, assistant general secretary, CWS, also added that the union is yet to receive a response from DoSE on its memorandum. He maintained that whatever action CWS takes is for the better future of Tuensang and affirmed that CWS is steadfast on getting a permanent solution for the issue.
