The State government is faced with a daunting task of providing infrastructure like buildings and open spaces for accommodating students in the backward classes residential schools.
Days after the inauguration of 119 residential schools for students hailing from the BC communities, the government is scouting for land and possible ready-built infrastructure to house the educational institutions launched as part of efforts to take quality education to the doorstep of the underprivileged sections.
The 119 residential schools in addition to 50 more meant exclusively for the minorities had been inaugurated at one go across the State on June 12 with an intake for the current academic year estimated to be around 28,600 students from classes V to VII.
Necessary material like chairs and tables for teachers, office furniture and dual desks for students along with blankets and carpets had already been supplied to all the schools at an estimated amount of ₹27 crore. The government is, however, said to be facing problems on account of locating the schools in spacious premises as envisaged. The problem is profound when it comes to the core urban areas, particularly those in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits.
Residential schools meant for four constituencies — Amberpet, Musheerabad, Chandrayangutta and Goshamahal —for instance had been inaugurated at Saroornagar as suitable locations for housing them could not be found in the four constituencies. Senior officials said the department would manage the state of affairs for the current academic year through leased/rented premises.
But the complication would start when the schools are expected to be upgraded to accommodate more classes and sections in the coming years. “These schools will have class VIII from the next academic year and class IX in the subsequent year. The process will continue as the schools, launched as part of the ambitious KG-PG scheme, will be upgraded every passing year,” a senior official said.
It was estimated that each school would require close to two acre land if the facilities are to be provided as expected.
Obtaining land in semi-urban and rural areas would not be an issue, but the problem was in getting land in the urban areas given the fact that open land is a scarce commodity, especially in the rapidly developing city like Hyderabad.
“The cost of land is much higher in the urban areas and could inflate the requirement several times. Even after the land is identified and procured, putting in place the necessary infrastructure will take at least a year. In view of this, we are exploring various options, including taking the vacant buildings of engineering colleges and other institutions on long-term rental basis as this will give us ready-built infrastructure,” a senior official told The Hindu .
