Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Feb 13: Education Minister Sakeena Itoo today informed the House that the land acquisition for construction of Government Degree College (GDC) Bishnah has been stalled due to dispute with the landowners.
The Minister stated this while replying to a question of Legislator Dr. Rajeev Kumar Bhagat regarding identification of land for GDC Bishnah in the House.
She informed the House that GDC Bishnah was sanctioned by the Government in 2007 and has been functioning since 2008 from the premises of Government Higher Secondary School (Boys), Bishnah on a temporary basis with makeshift arrangements in absence of its own permanent infrastructure.
The Minister informed the House that 55 Kanal, 14 Marla land at Chak Avtara, Bishnah, was identified for the college building in 2010. However, the landowners refused to accept the acquisition notices under Section 4(1) of the Land Acquisition Act thus stalling the process.
The Minister further said that the Higher Education Department (HED) of then State Government had already released an amount of Rs. 192.165 lakh in 2013 to District Development Commissioner, Jammu, for payment of compensation to the concerned landowners. She added that despite this, the acquisition could not be finalized due to non-cooperation from the landowners.
Legislator, Sham Lal Sharma raised supplementary question.
Meanwhile, Minister informed the House that the government is focusing on upgradation of infrastructure as well as faculty requirements in the existing Degree Colleges.
The Minister stated this while replying to a question of Legislator, Muzaffar Iqbal Khan in the Legislative Assembly.
She added that the matter regarding establishment of Degree College at Manjakote was part of the feasibility report submitted in September 2019 beyond which the department has not received any demand for establishment of Degree College in the region.
The Minister said that as per the feasibility report submitted by the Principal, Government Degree College Rajouri, the region meets the minimum requirements laid down by the Committee of Administrative Secretaries constituted in 2018 for examining the feasibility of proposed locations for establishment of new Degree Colleges.
She added that the department is presently prioritizing the up-gradation and strengthening of 52 newly sanctioned Degree Colleges approved in 2019 by equipping them with requisite infrastructure facilities like buildings, laboratories, libraries and by providing adequate teaching and non-teaching faculty so as to make these institutions fully functional.
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