Engg colleges serve ultimatum to AP government

HYDERABAD: The Consortium of Professional Colleges Managements Association on Tuesday served an ultimatum to the state government demanding release of funds under the fee reimbursement scheme.Consortium president N Ramesh said they would not allow students to sit for semester examinations scheduled to held from April 28 if the government did not release the money as per its earlier promise.Till the first week of February the government had not paid a single rupee to professional colleges towards fee reimbursement for 2011-12.When the managements threatened to shut down the colleges, the government responded on the next day promising to release 25 per cent fund with immediate effect, 25 per cent by the end of March 31 and the remaining 50 per cent by the end of June.But the government did not keep its promise , Ramesh said.The government had issued tokens for 25 per cent fund towards its immediate and first phase of payment but many colleges did not encash the tokens because the government treasuries did not release the required fund.Consortium secretary G Panduranga Reddy said they were planning to meet chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and deputy chief minister and higher education minister Damodar Rajanarsimha in the next couple of days to urge them to release the money.“Banks have rated professional college managements accounts as ‘Non- Paying Accounts’ for regular delay of payments.The colleges are, therefore, facing a fund crunch and are no longer in a position to run the show,’’ he said.