Rs 60 crore boost for welfare hostels: CM Revanth releases funds for food, salaries and repairs

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy announced the release of Rs 60 crore from CMRF (Chief Minister’s Relief Fund) to meet the emergency needs of the BC, SC, ST and minority welfare hostels in the state.

Funds for food and salaries

The funds are being used for food charges in hostels, release of temporary staff salaries, motor repairs and other emergency works in the residential hostels.

At a high-level review of all welfare departments on Monday, the Chief Minister handed over the cheques of Rs 60 crore to the senior officers of the respective departments.

Development of welfare hostels

Emphasising that the welfare hostels should be upgraded by adapting technology to provide quality education, the CM ordered the authorities to arrange for facial recognition of students, teaching and non-teaching staff staying in every hostel.

The Chief Minister stressed that accountability and the availability of all data are important to run the hostels with good academic results.

App to check the quality of food

CM Revanth also instructed the officials to develop an app to know the quality of food provided to students regularly. Several measures should be taken to ensure that students get quality and nutritious food with proper nutrients, including the calories they get in their regular diet, he said.

The CM reviewed the supply of uniforms and books to the students in the welfare hostels and gave specific instructions to the officials to upload the details of the management of the hostels and accommodation facilities on the dashboard every day.

Focus on health of students

Stating that special attention should also be paid to the health of the students in the hostels, the Chief Minister suggested developing a network between hostels and government and private medical colleges, community health centres and area hospitals in every district.

The officials were ordered to organise medical camps in the hostels and make available doctors during the emergency. The District Collectors and Additional Collectors were also instructed to visit the hostels frequently and ensure that the students get better services.

24-hour hotline for medical help

The CM suggested setting up a hotline so that doctors are available online 24 hours a day, and the use of ‘ed tech’ to prepare for competitive exams. The services provided to hostel students will also be informed through social media to stop the false propaganda, the CM said, ordering the officials to develop the apps for all these.

To streamline the administrative system and run the hostels efficiently, CM Revanth Reddy ordered Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao and Special Chief Secretary to Welfare Departments Sabyasachi Ghosh to submit an action plan regarding scholarships, staff salaries, diet charges, construction costs, other expenses, payment of dues, monthly expenses for running the hostels and the amount required for payment of dues for BC, SC, ST and minority hostels.

The authorities were also ordered to mobilise funds from centrally sponsored schemes for the hostels and release matching grants from the state government immediately.