The Ministry of Human Resource Development has sanctioned Rs. 20 crore to Kuvempu University to upgrade infrastructure under the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA).
Jogan Shankar, Vice-Chancellor of the university, told The Hindu that in the first phase Rs. 10 crore had already been released.
The university will use the amount for constructing new hostels, repair existing buildings and strengthen access to information technology for students.
An amount of Rs 7.5 crore will be used to construct new hostels for boys, girls and research scholars. The university has planned to spend Rs. 8.75 crore to renovate and repair the existing hostel rooms and classrooms. Work to repair the roads and the boundary wall in the campus in Shankaraghatta will also be taken up. The university has also planned to repair solar lights, audio-visual systems that have become non-functional.
According to the guidelines, the remaining Rs 3.75 crore should be used under information, communication and technology (ICT) component. The university has planned to establish a digital library, a digital seminar hall and a video conference hall with this amount, he said.
The university will convene a meeting of its top officials shortly on preparing a detailed action plan to utilise the amount. After getting the approval from the concerned authorities for the action plan, work will commence, he said.
Mr. Shankar said that Kuvempu University is among the 40 universities in India to receive grant under RUSA. The university had submitted a proposal seeking Rs. 24.5 crore under RUSA against which Rs. 20 crore had been sanctioned, he said.
S.A. Kori, Executive Director of Karnataka State Higher Education Council, visited the university on Saturday and held discussion on implementation of works with the grants released under RUSA.
The assistance extended under RUSA will upgrade the academic standards of the university, he said. Registrar Mallika Ghanti, Finance Officer Keshavaiah, Nodal Officer of RUSA project S.K. Narasimhamurthy were present in the meeting.
In the first phase, Rs. 10 crore has already been released to the varsity
The university plans to construct new buildings and repair existing ones
