Kohima, March 5: A crucial consultative meeting on the job reservation policy in Nagaland on Friday constituted a working group to review the policy and put forth recommendations to the State Government.
The meeting convened by the State Government through the Cabinet Sub-Committee on Reservation Policy headed by Deputy Chief Minister Yanthungo Patton with different stakeholders was held today at Hotel Japfu here under chairmanship of Chief Secretary J Alam.
Those who attended the meeting include Deputy CM, Patton, Ministers Neiba Kronu, Metsubo Jamir and P Paiwang Konyak, Advisors K T Sukhalu, Zhaleo Rio and Toshi Wungtung from the Cabinet committee while civil society organizations were Core Committee on Rationalization of Reservation Policy (CCoRoRP), Eastern Nagaland Peoples’ Organization (ENPO), Eastern Naga Students’ Federation (ENSF), Eastern Nagaland Gazetted Officers Association (ENGOA), Central Nagaland Tribes Council (CNTC), Naga Students’ Federation (NSF) and Tenyimi Public Organization (TPO). Representatives from the Nagaland Public Service Commission were also present in the meeting.
Briefing media-persons after the crucial marathon meeting, which lasted for more than two and half hours, Minister for Planning & Coordination, Land Revenue and Parliamentary Affairs, Neiba Kronu said the meeting had fruitful deliberations with the stakeholders on the current reservation policy of the State.
The members present shared their opinions and constituted a 14 member working group comprising 7 members of the Cabinet sub-committee and one each member from the 7 civil society organizations, he said.
Kronu informed that the working group will have another round of meeting on March 20 to sort-out the suggestions presented in Friday’s meeting and review the whole job reservation policy, which will be taken to the Government by the Cabinet sub-committee as recommendations for the reservation policy.
Problems keep on cropping on the reservation policy, the Government wants that whether it is done in pocket, area, block or tribe wise, we want the opinions of the stakeholders also so that everyone apply their mind and reason together in order to sail smoothly in future, he said.
Saying that in today’s meeting, the civil societies brought their suggestions while the Chief Secretary made a PowerPoint presentation of the Government’s policy, Kronu said the working group would go into further details and consult their own tribes and return to the Cabinet sub-committee.
The working group will closely study the entire reservation policy, he said.
On the time frame for the working committee to submit its recommendations, Chief Secretary J Alam said that the process of deliberations are in progress while the working group will go into the details of the suggestions and views made by the civil society.
The working group will submit to the cabinet sub-committee and then take the recommendations to the Government for the final decision, he said.
Civil society organizations representatives for the working group are: ENPO – E Kekongchim Yimchunger, TPO – Vipopal Kintso, CNTC – Sungro Kithan, ENSF – Sepeli L Sangtam, CNSA – Himahito, ENGOA – M S Thongpang while NSF and CCoRoRP are yet to submit their name.
Chairing the meeting Chief Secretary, J. Alam delivered the welcome address. (Page News Service)
