The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Hostellers’ mess charges raised

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Friday, Jan 11, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Hostellers’ mess charges raised

Special Correspondent

Nearly 10 lakh SC/ST/BC students to benefit

New charges will come into effect from June 1
YSR orders one toilet for every ten students in hostels

HYDERABAD: With a view to improving the quality of food provided to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribe and Backward Classes in hostels, the Government has announced a 40 per cent hike in the monthly “mess charges” payable to them.

Nearly 10 lakh students will receive the revised mess charges which will come into effect from June 1, when the next academic year begins.

Fee reimbursement

A decision was also taken to enhance the tuition fee reimbursement of BC students to Rs. 26,000 for engineering and to Rs. 55,000 for MBBS course. For PG, degree and Intermediate students, the reimbursement has been hiked to Rs. 5,000, Rs. 2,500 and Rs. 1,500 respectively. A sum of Rs. 297 crore will be provided in 2008-09 budget for these reimbursements which will be extended even to MCA and MBA students.

Also, the existing rates of post-matric scholarships for SC and STs have been increased by 30 per cent, allowing higher amounts towards medical, engineering, post-graduation and degree courses. The parental income limit has been hiked to Rs. 1 lakh per annum to allow the scholarship to more students.

Student aid

Similarly, the student aid payable to day scholars in all the three groups for purchase of bedding materials, cosmetics etc have also been increased, all to come into force from June 1.

These decisions were taken by Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy at a meeting on Thursday when he also cleared a proposal to form a Plains Tribal Development Agency .

Tribal Welfare Minister D. S. Redya Naik later told reporters that consequent to the hikes, SC/ST/BC students of Class I to VII in any of the 1,100 schools run by the his department would get Rs. 473 a month each, towards mess charges (Rs. 338 earlier) and those of ClassVIII to Intermediate Rs. 535 (Rs. 412).

Expressing displeasure over unhygienic conditions prevailing in hostels, he wanted one toilet for every ten students by June 1 and construction of compound walls. He wanted vacancies of teacher and wardens to be filled by June 1 .

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