OU presents Rs 41.72 cr deficit budget

• 70% goes for salaries and pensions
• Asks Govt for Rs 45 Cr bailout package
• No new courses, projects
• Decline in distance education income

The financial position of Osmania University is not satisfactory! This was evident from its annual budget for the next fiscal 2013-14 which was presented on Tuesday. The year is likely to commence with an opening balance of Rs 42.55 lakhs. While the receipts during the year are estimated at Rs 328.67 crores, the expenditure is likely to be Rs 370.82 crores. The shortfall is Rs 41.72 crores, which is, according to the Vice Chancellor Prof. S Satyanarayana, is the highest in the last 30 years. Steep rise in salary bill- i.e. by 20% and payment of arrers along with huge fall in the income from distance education courses contributed to massive deficit, Vice Chancellor disclosed. The University, in its budget itself, has urged the state government to provide a grant of Rs 45 crores to meet the expenses. "Unless a bail- out package is given to us, it would be very hard to run the university. We cannot pay the pensions in the first instance. As you know, we have to give pensions as per the enhanced pay scales for the faculty who were retired after 2006. This is an additional burden" Vice Chancellor told The Hans India. "We cannot meet the contingency demands like electricity, water etc. As there is no sight of raising internal resources, government should help us" he added. No new courses have been proposed in the budget. Except PG Centre at Siddipet, which will be constructed at a cost of Rs 19.94 crore, no substantial allocation was made for any new college in the University area. "We should start new courses or colleges only under 'need-based' model. Even if we start new courses or colleges, they will not be viable. So, we had to abandon most of our programmes" Satyanarayana explained.

While a member suggested that the Univesity should try to attract SC-ST SubPlan funds for the betterment of students, employees of those communities, the Vice Chancellor replied that it's still in primitive stage. 'I will write to UGC on the utilization of funds if available to us and we can make a move only after some guidelines are issued by the government" he averred. While another retired member of the Senate exhorted the need to take up vigorous steps to increase the intake of Distance Education courses as it would fill up the coffers, the Vice Chancellor made it clear that for the sake of revenue, standards cannot be diluted. "The scope is very little now with regard to increase in revenue from distance education since a lot more autonomous colleges have come up. The new universities have also been starting their own distance education programmes. In fact, the number of students is less even for regular colleges. How can we bring for distance education" he questioned.