Students pay the price for govt apathy

Karimnagar: The higher education sector in Karimnagar is facing an unprecedented crisis as private degree and PG colleges have been shut indefinitely since November 18. The closures come in the wake of financial strain caused by the government’s prolonged delay in releasing fee reimbursement funds.

For over three years now, fee reimbursements for the academic years 2021-22, 2022-23, and 2023-24 have been pending, leaving college managements unable to pay staff salaries or sustain operational costs. Despite repeated appeals and ultimatums to the government, no tangible action has been taken.

The situation has left more than 40,000 students in Karimnagar district alone, including those studying at 65 private degree colleges and 20 PG colleges affiliated with Satavahana University, in academic limbo.

The issue traces back to the Congress government’s promises to strengthen the education sector during the recent Assembly election. While its manifesto assured better management of fee reimbursements and improvements in private educational institutions, ground realities tell a different story. College managements have appealed to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and other ministers, requesting an initial release of Rs 500 crore to stabilise finances, but these efforts have yielded no results.

Notably, the Satavahana University Private Degree and PG College Management Association’s (SUPMA) submitted a petition to the vice chancellor to resolve the issue. It may be mentioned here that the teaching and non-teaching staff in many colleges haven’t been paid for over six months. Although district treasury officials have generated online token numbers for reimbursement, the State finance department has failed to clear payments. Consequently, managements are left without the funds they desperately need, forcing many to shut down indefinitely.

Students are worried because the situation has cropped up in the middle of the academic year. They say that the ongoing fee reimbursement dispute between the government and college managements is becoming dangerous for their future. In this context, the students and their parents are demanding that the government should immediately focus on this problem and solve it.

The indefinite closure has thrown students’ academic schedules into disarray. B Sindhu, a B Com final-year student, expressed her distress, saying, “Many of us come from rural backgrounds and are pursuing education with great difficulty. For three years, the government has failed to reimburse our fees, leaving us in a helpless situation.”

Kumaraswamy, a second-year degree student, voicing his frustration, said, “The government is prioritising welfare schemes while neglecting the education sector. Education is the foundation of societal progress, and this neglect will have dire consequences. We urge the government to release the funds immediately.”