High Court sternly warns engineering colleges

Hyderabad: The High Court at Hyderabad sent out a strong message that it would not allow private engineering colleges that do not have mandated infrastructural facilities and required staff to function any longer.

“If the present state of affairs remain, those passing out of such colleges would remain engineers only on paper”, stated the Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Dilip D Bhosale and Justice S V Bhatt on Wednesday while hearing the writ appeals filed by JNTU, Hyderabad and other connected matters.

Expressing concern over the findings of the joint Inspection Committee constituted by the Court to go into the issue, the Bench made it clear that they are not going to show any leniency to colleges that have not furnished undertakings to the Court in regard to improvement of facilities. The Bench observed that the colleges have to come forward to rectify the lacunae but unfortunately that was not happening.

The Bench was dealing with a batch of writ appeals filed by JNTU, Hyderabad challenging orders of the single judge and other connected writ petitions in a marathon hearing that lasted over five hours. Some of the issues that cropped up during the hearing included labs that had dysfunctional, non-equipped computers, no proof of purchase of equipment, non-adherence of norms relating to appointment of faculty etc.

The Bench observed these are serious issues given the suspicion that such equipment and staff are mobilised temporarily during inspections. The Bench ordered the JNTU, Hyderabad to conduct surprise checks and only on that condition allow continuation of courses in some colleges that otherwise met other requirements.

Telangana Advocate General K Ramakrishna Reddy brought to the notice of the Court that in some colleges even attendance registers for the faculty have become disputed with those whose signatures it showed contradicting them. The Bench observed these were serious allegations. The hearing would continue on Thursday.