ROURKELA: The National Institute of Technology-Rourkela (NIT-R) seems to have given its famed transparency policy a quiet burial. In sharp deviation from usual practice, the institute’s transparency policy has taken a hit with meetings of Board of Governors, Senate and decision making proceedings not getting uploaded on its website. Even if the details are uploaded, they lack complete information.
NIT-R has a formal ‘Transparency Policy’ in tune with the RTI Act which is approved by the BOG and was announced in 2013. Sources said details of 51st to 56th BOG meetings were uploaded on the institute’s website without the annexure that contains all vital information relating to a decision.However, neither the minutes nor the annexure were uploaded for public viewing for 57th to 59th BOG meetings. Similarly, the minutes of 72nd and 73rd Senate meetings were uploaded without annexure, while for 74th to 77th Senate meetings, no information was uploaded.
Employees against whom actions have been taken by the BOG are not being reportedly informed about their offences, not even through RTI queries. Two BOG members nominated by the Senate of the NIT-R are expected to be a two-way information bridge, particularly for the faculty. But, they wore a veil of secrecy, claimed some faculty members and an officer requesting anonymity.They claimed under extreme secrecy and implied gag order, selected individuals are being harassed. They claimed multiple committees or commissions have been created to find ‘possible faults’ of pre-selected individuals.
An officer, who is also a PhD scholar in the School of Management of the Institute, in March had moved the Orissa High Court and obtained a stay order against some adverse decisions taken by the institute against her. Mumbai-based BOG Chairman Santrupt B Misra, who is the CEO, Carbon Black Business and Director, Group HR, Aditya Birla Management Corporation Pvt. Ltd, said the BOG is committed to transparency wherever necessary. He said BOG members are obliged to keep some policy matters internal to NIT-R and confined to BOG meeting.