SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Jan 23: The long pending election of Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University (BBMKU) Dhanbad teachers association would be held next month.
The BBMKU Teachers Association (TA) general secretary Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary said that due to unavoidable reasons, the election could not be conducted last year but since the situation is becoming normal day by day, the poll for the new body would be announced soon.
“In fact, teachers of BBMKU are involved in setting questions papers, examinations duty, and engagement in New Education Policy (NEW), there was no time to hold meetings of teachers and prepare the programme for election. So, now we are working fast to hold the poll as soon as possible,” said Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary.
Though in October 2022, the outgoing body had announced to hold an election of the teachers association in November (2022) after the Chhath festival, the executive committee thereafter neither called the Annual General Body (AGM) meeting in this regard in November and December nor announced the date for the poll.
The first teachers association of six years old BBMKU was held in 2018 and it became due in 2021 but due to Corona pandemic, it had to be deferred.
BBMKU Teachers Association election has also become necessary as the poll of the state body Federation of Universities Teachers Association Jharkhand (FUTAJ) is also likely to be held in Dhanbad. The election of FUTAJ is also due since 2016. The last time the state body election was held was in Dumka in 2013-14.
Since FUTAJ president Prof Navin Kumar Singh is scheduled to retire from service this year, teachers of all universities want to hold the election before his superannuation. FUTAJ general secretary Prof Rajkumar (Ranchi University) said that BBMKU Dhanbad Teachers Association had shown interest in holding a state body poll, and he would soon visit the coal city to finalise the election programme.
In BBMKU, two factions of Teachers’ bodies one of Dr Himanshu Shekhar Choudhary and another of Dr BN Singh were functioning after the creation of the university. But now in the interest of teachers both groups have mended the fence and agreed to participate in a single election.
Dr BN Singh, who was general secretary of Vinoba Bhave University (VBU) Hazaribagh before the division, switched over to BBMKU Dhanbad in 2017. However, he has kept himself out of association activities for time being till February for a family function.
