Tuition fee: Telangana HC seeks details of dues to engg colleges

Hyderabad: Telangana high court on Tuesday directed the state govt to place details of scholarship reimbursement dues to engineering colleges in the state. Justice EV Venugopal issued the direction while hearing a batch of petitions alleging the state govt's wilful and deliberate inaction in not releasing approximately 1,500 crore as tuition fee dues to various engineering colleges.Senior counsel L Ravichander, appearing for Keshav Memorial Institute of Technology, contended that if such huge amounts were due from a private individual, the courts would have punished the defaulter. However, he said that in the present case, even after "tokens"(for payments) were issued for the cleared amounts, payments were pending for over five years.
The petitioners also contended that under the scheme enunciated by the govt, tuition fee for candidates belonging to SC, ST and Backward Classes was paid directly to the colleges.To Keshav Memorial Institute of Technology alone, the govt owed 56 crore, the petitioner claimed. The counsel also pointed to govt orders of 2024 which had budgetary approval of about 1,500 crore.He said obtaining budgetary sanction and not making payments would amount to misappropriation and malfeasance. He further said brazen defences contrary to records and assurances hitherto given to the court were advanced, obviously due to ignorance. He also argued that the colleges were required to pay salaries to faculty, non-teaching staff and pay statutory dues such as PF, and that withholding such amounts completely jeopardised the administration of the colleges.