FATHI defers college bandh to Oct 23

Hyderabad: In a significant development concerning long-pending scholarship fee reimbursements, the FATHI Executive Council convened on Wednesday to deliberate on the assurances received from the Telangana government and decided to defer the proposed college bandh from October 13.

FATHI Core Committee members met with Vem Narender Reddy, Advisor to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, at his residence to discuss the release of dues. Narender Reddy conveyed that efforts were underway to release Rs 300 crore by Deepavali and appealed to the committee to defer the proposed strike until then.

Responding to this assurance, the FATHI EC held an extended meeting in the evening, where a majority of members participated and unanimously passed several key resolutions.

Accordingly, the proposed college bandh and strike scheduled from October 13 has been deferred until October 23, the day after Deepavali. If the promised funds are not released by then, a General Body Meeting will be convened to decide further action. The EC noted that despite the release of Rs 200 crore before Dasara, nearly 70 minority and general colleges received no disbursement.

The EC resolved to immediately approach the Deputy Chief Minister, Chief Secretary, and Finance Secretary to ensure these institutions receive their dues. All engineering, pharmacy, B.Ed, MBA, MCA, law, architecture, nursing, and paramedical colleges are instructed to submit detailed dues data for academic years 2021–22 to 2024–25 to the FATHI headquarters. This will help eliminate confusion and strengthen the case for full reimbursement.