The recent reports of an epic anomaly has once again poised to drag the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), whose image is already battered with scathing scandals and needlessly protracted controversies, into yet another ugly high profile debate with the state government taking serious note of the situation- to the extent of bringing it up for discussion during the ongoing state assembly session. The issue regarding an advertisement for the post of Director of the institute in which the age of superannuation has been given as 62 which is in contrast to the resolution taken during the 42nd Executive Council meeting of RIMS held on 8 Aug, 2011 and reaffirmed during the 43rd meeting of the Council on 22nd Aug 2012 fixing the age of superannuation of the Director at 65 years. And while the issue is being centered round the age of superannuation, the situation is bound to get murkier with a few more unsavory revelations regarding the blatant disregard of various other resolutions being taken during the meetings of the Executive Council, RIMS, according to a highly placed source close to Imphal Times. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source revealed that the resolution for appointment of an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) under agenda no. 9 which was passed during the 43rd Council meeting has been summarily erased by the Deputy Director, while another resolution for appointment of an Internal Auditor during the same meeting has also been cancelled recently- and reported in various media in the state. What is adding to the sense of foreboding and suspicion is the fact that this premier institute of the North East region has been functioning without a regular or full-time Director for more than 10 months now. It goes without saying that the Director-in-Charge cannot carry on for more than six months which necessitates handing over the charge every half year and unfailingly creating more controversies. More importantly, a Director-in-Charge does not have the statutory power or authority to initiate any major developmental activities and this has resulted in the institute lagging behind in every sphere of activities as compared to its counterparts in other parts of the country such as AIIMS, PGIMER Chandigarh, NEIGRIHMS Shillong and JIPMER Pondicherry.
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