PUNE: The information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry has deferred the meeting for the selection of a new director for the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). The meeting was likely to have been held in New Delhi on July 13.

The selection panel for the new director included controversial chairperson of the FTII society Gajendra Chauhan. According to sources in the I&B ministry, Chauhan‘s presence in the panel was one of the reasons behind postponing the selection interviews.

The ministry does not want to get a new director in the middle of the ongoing students’ strike at the institute as he will not be able to work to his potential and it wants to resolve the issue as soon as possible, a ministry source said.

The interview process for a new director will start in the next two or three months. The source added that it is now likely that current FTII director D J Narain may get a two-month extension.

Narain joined the institute on July 19, 2011, for a three-year tenure. He was given a year’s extension. His tenure ends on July 18. He has been given additional charge as director general of the Films Division in Mumbai.

Chauhan and officials in the I&B ministry were to start the selection process, which would have been completed in four or five months. The ministry has been working for the last seven months on the selection and has shortlisted 14 names, the ministry source had earlier said.

Narain confirmed to TOI that the July 13 meeting has been deferred, but refused to give the details. “The government is concerned about the academics of the students which is being hampered because of the strike. The authorities are working hard to resolve the issue. Students should resume classes now,” he said.

According to the source, high-rank ministry officials, along with minister of state for I&B Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, held meetings in the ministry headquarters over the weekend to discuss the issue in detail. The students have said they are interested in a second round of talks with the ministry. The ministry officials also contemplated on meeting the students again. It likely that the ministry may send a delegation to Pune for further discussions or call the student representatives to New Delhi, the source added.

Meanwhile, the FTII students have welcomed the ministry’s decision to defer the selection of a new director. “The students see this as a positive initiative from the ministry’s end towards continuing their efforts to resolve the current crisis.

We are hopeful that the government continues to keep the current FTII society in an inactive state till a resolution is achieved for our fair demands. The students, at their end, have already requested for another dialogue with the ministry to address their concerns. We are hopeful that we would get a fair and empathic hearing,” said a statement released by the FTII students’ association on Sunday.

The students have been on strike since June 12 against certain appointments in the FTII society.

The students see this as a positive initiative from the ministry’s end towards continuing their efforts to resolve the current crisis. We are hopeful that the government continues %to keep the current FTII %Society in an inactive state till a resolution is achieved for our fair demands

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