Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, October 19 2008:
Counsellors and laboratory technicians engaged in Integrated Counselling and Testing Centres (ICTC) funded by Manipur State AIDS Control Society (MACS) abstained from appearing in the Evaluation Test of National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) today.
According to a MACS official, abstention from the Test is likely to have negative impact on further engagement of these counsellors and lab technicians as there is strong possibility that NACO might retrench them.
It is informed that under the aegis of NACO, Evaluation Test were conducted in other States of the country with the same exercise for Manipur scheduled at the premises of St Patrick School, Thangmeiband this afternoon at 2 .
In all there are 49 ICTCs in manipur wherein 60 counsellors and 54 laboratory technicians are engaged on contract basis.
ICTC monitors activities of Voluntary Confidential Testing Centre as well as Prevention of Parent to Child Transmission centres.
Some of the candidates were of the view that their experience of 5/6 years in the field of HIV/AIDS related works do not deserved to be reassessed apart from the fact that performance of centres that have many clients vary from those centres with insignificant number of patients.
They also questioned why personnel engaged in ART centres and blood banks are not put through similar evaluation test.
Speaking to news-persons at the test venue, a MACS official deputed to supervise the evaluation test asserted that appearing at the test is unavoidable as the exercise would determine overall performance of the personnel.
He also confided that questions are prepared by NACO and maximum care is taken to ensure controversy-free examination.
Further conveying that candidates scoring high marks at the test would benefit from increment hike, the official also stated that candidates with low score too have nothing to loose as they would be sent to either Mumbai or Chennai for capacity building training programmes.
holding back minutes on possible repercussion against the candidates for abstaining from the evaluation test, he simply cautioned that they (candidates) would certainly face inconveniences in the near future as the final decision would be NACO's.It is pertinent to mention that MACS is currently under stringent scrutiny of NACO following reports of fund misuse as well as diversion/extortion to/by armed groups.
With NACO reportedly holding back project funds to MACS those working or employed at the latter are yet to draw their salary for the past few months.