Over 1,000 hostels have no own building: Minister

Scores of hostels for backward classes students lack basic infrastructure and the state government will expedite the required works, Backward Classes Welfare Minister B Sriramulu said on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters here, Sriramulu said as many as 1,363 backward classes welfare hostels do not have their own buildings. While there was no dearth of funds, the construction work had been delayed, he added.

The government had given the contract to Karnataka Residential Educational Institutions Society (KREIS) to build hostels for backward classes students. However, the organisation had completed only 50% of the work. The government will now consider a change of hands for the contract to speed up the process, Sriramulu said adding that he would discuss the issue with Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.

A recent CAG report on the Social Welfare Department also noted that the number of students accommodated in the hostels exceeded the envisaged capacity. The report also pointed out the delay in construction works.

As per the report, the government had entrusted the construction of 118 hostels to KREIS, apart from works related to 70 hostels to Nirmiti Kendra (NK) and 11 hostels to Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Limited (KRIDL). The report partly attributed the sluggish pace to a delay in handing over land and also non-availability of land.