IMPHAL, Oct 24: The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) recently informed the Delhi High Court that the cancellation of Churachandpur and Ukhrul as examination centres for government recruitment exams was prompted by security concerns. The SSC highlighted a previous incident during the last exam conducted in Ukhrul, where “TCS associates were trapped in their hotel for eight days under extremely difficult circumstances” due to violence in the area.
This information was provided in response to a petition from the Kuki Students’ Organisation, a registered student body based in Churachandpur, seeking the reinstatement of these locations as exam venues for the remainder of the academic year. In a notice on its website dated September 4, the SSC announced that the Combined Graduate Level Examination (Tier-1), 2024, would not take place in Churachandpur and Ukhrul “due to the prevailing law and order situation in Manipur.”
In an affidavit filed on October 23 by undersecretary Ashesh Chaudhary, the SSC stated that an audit of the Ukhrul examination centre is required before it can be approved as a venue. However, this audit has been hindered because the network auditor could not access Ukhrul, and team members from outside Manipur have expressed hesitancy about traveling to both Churachandpur and Ukhrul due to the current local conditions.
The affidavit also included information from TCS, which, in an email on July 31, noted that their team in Imphal, primarily comprised of the Meitei community, felt unsafe traveling to these districts because of serious security threats. It was mentioned that during the last exam on May 3, 2023, violence broke out, which led to TCS associates being confined to their hotel for an extended period, resulting in the cancellation of exams at that venue.
Following TCS’s indication of its inability to conduct exams in Churachandpur and Ukhrul due to ongoing violence and agitation, the SSC officially removed these locations as exam centres in its September notice. However, the SSC has expressed its continued interest in holding exams in Churachandpur and Ukhrul, recognizing that the security situation in the region is “both sensitive and fluid.”
The Delhi High Court, comprised of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, acknowledged SSC’s assurances and directed the commission to perform an updated assessment of the situation, with a new status report due by January 8. The court is set to revisit the matter on January 15. Since May of the previous year, Manipur has faced sporadic violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities, contributing to the ongoing security challenges in the area.
