Telangana private colleges to shut indefinitely from Sept 15 over Rs 8,000 crore arrears

Hyderabad: Private professional colleges across Telangana, including engineering and pharmacy institutions, will shut down indefinitely from September 15 as managements protest the State government’s failure to clear Rs 8,000 crore in fee reimbursement arrears.

Federation serves notice to government

The Federation of Associations of Telangana Higher Education (FATHI) submitted a formal closure notice on Friday to Telangana State Council of Higher Education Chairman Prof. V Balakista Reddy.

The federation warned that operations would remain suspended until pending arrears are released.

Immediate release of funds demanded

Managements are seeking the urgent release of Rs 1,200 crore linked to already generated tokens for which budgetary allocations exist.

“The government must release the token amount by September 18. If it does, we will reconsider the closure,” said N Ramesh, Chairman of FATHI.

Faculty and staff salaries unpaid

The prolonged delay in reimbursements has left faculty and staff salaries unpaid for months, forcing many educators to struggle for basic living expenses.

Several college managements described the situation as ‘financially crippling and demoralising’ for teaching and non-teaching staff alike.

Government priorities questioned

Instead of resolving the arrears, the government has convened a meeting with university vice-chancellors to discuss implementing a facial recognition-based attendance system tied to the fee reimbursement scheme.

Managements criticised the move as a ‘misplaced priority’ amid an ongoing financial crisis.

Closure coincides with Engineers’ Day