Inter college affiliations raise red flags in telangana

DIEOs under scanner over approvals

metro india news  I hyderabad

Serious allegations have surfaced that the inspection mechanism within Telangana’s Intermediate Education system has been weakened, particularly in the process of granting permissions, affiliations and No Objection Certificates (NOCs) to private and corporate junior colleges. Several District Intermediate Education Officers (DIEOs) are alleged to be exercising their authority arbitrarily, with claims that financial considerations are influencing approvals and inspections. While rules appear to be strictly enforced on paper, allegations suggest that they are sometimes ignored in practice in return for payments.

Private college managements have reportedly alleged that some DIEOs demand amounts running into lakhs of rupees for affiliation and the shifting of colleges from one location to another. According to allegations from some college managements, officials initially point out deficiencies and insist that all regulations must be followed. However, once negotiations take place, the same rules are allegedly relaxed and clearances are granted. Many managements are reportedly reluctant to make such allegations publicly.

Inspections for collections

For a college to receive recognition from the Intermediate Board and conduct admissions for an academic year, it must submit several mandatory documents. These include a valid building ownership or registered lease deed, an approved building plan, a fire safety NOC, mixed-occupancy approval where applicable, a corpus fund document, a structural soundness certificate, a sanitary certificate, teaching staff documents and documents relating to a playground.

Among these, the fire NOC, mixed-occupancy approval and sanitary certificate are considered particularly important. In their absence, obtaining recognition can become difficult. Buildings below six metres in height are required to have the prescribed fire fighting equipment, while buildings exceeding 15 metres require an NOC from the Fire Services Department. A large number of private and corporate junior colleges operating under these conditions are reportedly concentrated in Hyderabad, Medchal and Rangareddy districts.

College shifting process under scrutiny

The shifting of colleges from one location to another has reportedly become another major difficulty for private college managements. In some cases, managements may be forced to vacate rented premises following disputes with building owners or other unforeseen circumstances and shift their institutions to another mandal. Questions have also been raised over instances in which applications were reportedly forwarded to the Intermediate Board without adequately verifying whether the colleges possessed the required certificates.

The Intermediate Board Secretary recently issued show-cause notices to two DIEOs in the Greater Hyderabad area in connection with allegations surrounding colleges that submitted fake fire NOCs. There are also allegations that some senior officials within the Intermediate Board may have assisted the DIEOs. The Intermediate Board is understood to be taking the allegations seriously. Student organisations have demanded government intervention, calling for the annual approval process to be completely digitised and inspections to be conducted transparently to eliminate opportunities for manipulation and corruption. The government is also reportedly taking steps in this direction.