OU racing against time to spend 15 cr a month

​Hyderabad: Thanks to the centenary of the university after decades of neglect by the successive government, Osmania University is now racing against the time to spend about Rs 15 crore per month on development works during the remaining period of the current financial year.

According to the university officials, it is for the first time in decades that the university has got an opportunity to give a fillip to development works on the campus and some of its affiliated colleges which requires good funding.

It was against this backdrop that the State government had sanctioned Rs 200 crore during the budget year of 2017-18. However, the State government had released only Rs 50 crore in April 2017 and budget release orders had been given for another Rs 30 crore in the month of July of the same year. But, the university is yet to receive funds, a university source said.

The 146th Executive Council of the university had given administrative sanction to the development works to the tune of Rs 146 crore during January this year. A senior official of the university said Rs 50 crore had already been spent on the works and events related to the centenary celebrations which concluded on April 25, 2018.

 The university had to complete works worth about Rs 15 crore per month if it wanted to avail the remaining funds from the government. For this, it was decided to construct two boys’ hostels, each a 500-bed and a five-storeyed building with an estimated cost of about Rs 73 crore. Similarly, another 500-bed hostel building with five floors, including the ground floor for girls will be constructed in the University Women's College campus, Koti, with an estimated cost of Rs 34.93 crore.    

That apart, a three-storeyed academic building at the University PG College, Secunderabad with an estimated cost of Rs 21.64 crore and a 300-bedded four-storied hostel building with an estimated cost of Rs 17.12 crore will be constructed at University College of Science, Saifabad. Vice-Chancellor Prof S Ramachandram said, "Several of the works have already crossed the tender stage. We have roped in Central Public Works Department (CPWD) to ensure high construction standards. 

Being a central organisation having wide expertise in handling big projects it has the expertise and access to the latest contraction technology. We have already released about Rs 7.5 crore to the CPWD and committed to releasing another Rs 41 crore as soon as the funds are received from the government, he said. 

Adding, to these works, repairs, and renovation of the heritage buildings like Arts College, Department of Physics, Chemistry, Botany, Zoology and Law College will be taken up spending another Rs 14.86 crore, he said. Also, a pylon marking the centenary celebrations of the university will also be coming up on the campus with an estimated cost of Rs 3.8 crore, the Vice-Chancellors said.