Congress Launches Fee Reimbursement Protests

In a strongly worded statement, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee President N Uttam Kumar Reddy warned Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao against "playing with the lives and careers of economically backward students" in the State.

The meeting was also addressed by SC Department Chairman Koppula Raju, former minister P Sabitha Indira Reddy, NSUI Telangana President Balamoori Venkat Narsing Rao, Youth Congress President Anil Kumar Yadav and other senior leaders. TPCC Vice-President Mallu Ravi, Congress legislators Rammohan Reddy, Vamshichand Reddy, A Sampath Kumar and M Ranga Reddy, ex-MLAs Sudhir Reddy, Mallareddy Rangareddy, Pratap Reddy, Kuna Srisailam Goud and Ranga Reddy, DCC President Mallesh Yadav and other leaders were also present.

Speaking after launching the signature campaign seeking clearance of fee reimbursement dues, at Shamshabad on Friday, at a meeting organised by the National Students Union of India (NSUI) and the Youth Congress, Reddy said that it was surprising that the Chief Minister, who placed Telangana among the richest states in the nation and introduced a budget of Rs. 1.30 lakh crores, was hesitating to release a "meagre" Rs. 3,000 crores towards reimbursement dues.

The TPCC Chief said that the NSUI and the Youth Congress activists would collect filled in application forms from students of all educational institutions across Telangana and would forward them to the Chief Minister and the Governor seeking immediate clearance of the dues.

He also said that these applications would be handed over to All India Congress Committee (AICC) Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who was visiting Hyderabad on December 2, and would take up the issue with the President of India.

"While the poorest of poor parents gave highest education to their children during Congress regime due to its effective fee reimbursement policy, the TRS Government's failed to do the same and is forcing lakhs of poor students to discontinue their studies. This sort of negligence is highly unacceptable," he said.

Reddy alleged 14 lakh students would be affected by the delay in the reimbursement clearance. He pointed out that the Chief Minister had assured the students during the State Legislative Assembly session in March this year that all pending dues would be cleared and monthly payments would be made from April onwards.

He said that managements of several private intermediate, degree, PG, engineering, pharmacy, management and other colleges have informed the State Congress that 3,200 private colleges in Telangana were on the brink of closure due to the delay in the clearance of the dues. 2.5 lakh lecturers and staff of these private colleges had not been paid salaries for the last six months.

AICC Secretary in-charge of the Telangana Congress R C Khuntia said that the State was carved out with the help of students, and that KCR would face the music in case he under-estimated them.