No respite for CUK as NBCC fails to complete construction works
Srinagar: The shifting of the Central University of Kashmir (CUK) may hit another roadblock as the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) has failed to complete the construction of the buildings at its new campus.
The corporation was selected as executing agency for constriction of the pre-engineered buildings (PEB) for the CUK but has not handed over the buildings to the university administration.
“NBCC had fixed a deadline of six-month in 2015 but the construction is yet to be completed,” an official said.
Official said the varsity administration held several meetings with the NBCC head in New Delhi to get the work expedited but nothing has been done so far.
It may be recalled that the CUK is functional from a rented accommodations since last more than eight years. Given the slow pace of construction of new campus of CUK, crores of rupees released from UGC have got lapsed as well.
“Due to the non-completion of the buildings on time the CUK has not paid the funds to the NBCC. This has been done to pressurize the agency to complete the buildings at war footing,” an official said.
Amid the failure of the NBCC, the CUK administration has failed to shift its faculties and students to Ganderbal district in the new permanent campus.
The CUK had earlier started shifting few departments to Ganderbal in February, however, most of the academic departments are still functioning from rented accommodation at Nowgam and Srinagar.
An official said the process to start the constructions at permanent campus site has been started for which tenders have been issued as well.
“By March 2019, 80 percent departments of CUK will be shifted to Ganderbal,” Vice Chancellor CUK Prof. Mehraj-ud-din Mir said.
The management was supposed to shift the varsity to Ganderbal and run it from the make shift accommodations provided to them by the district administration.
Already reported, the district administration Ganderbal had provided accommodation available in old IT1 building, old building of district hospital, CMO building, old building of Physical Education Hostel besides hired accommodations to CUK till its own campus gets completed.
Most of the CUK academic departments are functioning from rented accommodations at Nowgam for the past more than eight years due to the delay in completion of the buildings for its campus.
The CUK has been allotted over 4600 kanals of land by the state government at Kurhama, Tulmulla and Barosoo villages of Ganderbal district.
“We are trying to shift all the departments to the given accommodation at Ganderbal by March 2019. The work on pre-engineered buildings will be expedited as well,” the VC said.
KV Correspondent
