Whenever the Government in a democratic dispensation resorts to superciliousness and berates the formula of consensus, it invites trouble for itself. Policy making and implementing authorities have to understand the likely consequences of an arbitrary decision that is very likely to touch the delicate sense of the people. Moreover, the Cabinet decision is not the gospel truth which will commit no error or which is so much paralysed by procedural exigency that it will not fix the errors brought to its notice.
The HRD Ministry floated a plan called Rashtriya Uchchatar Shikhsha Abhiyan (RUSA) in 2013. Under this plan, the State Government was offered to set up in both Jammu and Kashmir regions a University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) with the objective of imparting technical skills to the youth of the State as a measure of removing unemployment among the educated youth. HRD Ministry sanctioned Rs 52 crores for establishment of infrastructure for both the institutions, out of which 90 per cent will be Central share and 10 percent State share. Besides, the HRD Ministry also sanctioned 136 technical posts, 68 for each UIET. The State Government left the matter to two universities, Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir University opened the UIET in its Ganderbal Campus and Jammu University established it in its Janglot, Kathua University Campus. JU went on seriously with the matter, obtained the land for the unit, installed infrastructure, recruited staff and admitted students all as per the norms of the HRD Ministry.
Now the State Government in a Cabinet meeting decided to hand over these UIETs to the Cluster Universities in both the regions. The matter came up in the recently held 83rd meeting of the Jammu University Council presided over by the Governor. JU authorties pointed out that it was academically as well as logistically unreasonable to take away the technical college from the administrative control of JU and place it in the hands of the Cluster University. We find that the Jammu University has very cogent argument especially keeping in mind the larger interests of the student community. If Kashmir University has not any objection to handing over Ganderbal UIET to the Cluster University, that is their affair. As they have not been able to raise the infrastructure and would be happy to shun the responsibility and pass on the buck to the Cluster University seeking an alibi in the Cabinet order, the JU has no such compulsions. Therefore, it has right to express its unhappiness over a decision that affects hundreds of members of staff and students. The Kathua UIET has been serving the interests of the people of Jammu in general but of the district of Kathua in particular with a big hinterland and rural area to which it is serving. The Government is vociferously claiming that the interests of the rural areas and rural population are uppermost with it. But the arbitrary and ill-advised Cabinet decision grossly contradicts the expressed policy of the Government. A Cabinet decision is not the word of God that it cannot be changed or withdrawn. Are not there innumerable examples of Government withdrawing Cabinet orders after better sense prevailed in assessing the consequence of an ill conceived decision, The Kathua UIET has been running with appreciable efficiency and to the satisfaction of not only the representatives of the people but the people in general as well. The ill-advised decision of the Cabinet and the way the supercilious manner in which the Education Minister wants to handle the issue is fraught with serious consequences with regional sensitivities coming in to play. We would like to warn the Government that it should stop playing with fire and not drag Jammu region to same brink of disaster to which Kashmir region has been dragged.
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