*Not even one brick laid for 6 colleges in Jammu
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Dec 19: The much-talked about expansion of educational infrastructure to meet the requirement of the students has remained confined to the official files in Jammu and Kashmir as majority of the Degree Colleges sanctioned five years back are still lacking their own buildings mainly because of insensitivity of Higher Education, Revenue and Roads and Buildings Departments and Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation Limited.
The most shocking aspect is that even after the lapse of half a decade the concerned authorities are not in a position to specify the time-frame for these colleges getting the required infrastructure.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that during the financial year 2011-12, 22 Degree Colleges were sanctioned for different areas particularly those where the higher education facilities were not available and the students were travelling huge distance to reach the nearest college in the Government sector.
This decision had raised ray of hope among thousands of students about getting higher education with all the required facilities at their respective door-steps. The Government made these colleges operational either from the private buildings or from the nearby Government schools as an interim arrangement on the promise that these 22 Degree Colleges will get their own infrastructure in shortest possible time.
However, the insensitivity of all the concerned authorities towards the otherwise priority sector dashed the hopes of students of majority of these colleges and they were left with no option but to obtain higher education from the crammed accommodation and without much facilities, which otherwise are imperative for the students pursuing degree courses in different streams.
“What to talk of previous dispensations, even the present PDP-BJP Coalition Government has failed to get expedited the raising of infrastructure for majority of these colleges despite the fact that tall claims are being made about laying special focus on expansion of educational infrastructure across the State”, sources regretted while disclosing that not even one brick has been laid for six Degree Colleges of Jammu province despite lapse of five years.
Quoting an example, sources said that raising of building for Government Degree College Sunderbani has yet not began and the only development that has taken place in respect of this college during the last five years is finalization of site and approval of the Cabinet for transfer of land to the Higher Education Department.
As far as Government Degree College Kalakote is concerned, sources said, “land acquisition process is still going on and nobody knows when the work will actually start on ground for which an amount of Rs 200 lakh is already available with the concerned authorities”.
Similarly, construction of building for Government Degree College Gool has yet not began as it took five years to the concerned authorities to transfer the required chunk of land to the Higher Education Department for the purpose.
About the Degree College at Sarh Bagha Mahore in Reasi district, sources informed that land acquisition proceedings have yet not reached the logical conclusion although funds for payment of compensation to the private land owners have already been kept at the disposal of the Deputy Commissioner. During the past several years, the College is being run from a private building by paying huge rent.
They further informed that Government Degree College Marwah and Government Degree College Thathri are being run from private building and a complex of Rural Development Department respectively as land acquisition process has yet not reached the logical conclusion till date.
“Till middle of this year, the site for construction of Degree College Thathri could not be finalized and even at present the concerned officers don’t know when the work will formally start”, sources said, adding “similarly no time-frame can be specified for start of work for Degree College Marwah”.
According to the sources, the situation vis-à-vis construction of infrastructure for Degree College Nobra in Leh district and Degree College Zanaskar in Kargil district is also not satisfactory. “At both these places the work is going on at a snail’s pace and the concerned authorities are not in a position to specify any time frame for completion of the work”, sources regretted.
They informed that work was also going on at unsatisfactory pace in respect of many Degree Colleges in Kashmir valley.
Follow our WhatsApp channel