Education to Irani chai suffer due to T-Stirs

Hyderabad, Jan 6 (INN): Save for a couple of personal gains by the political leaders under the banner of 'Telangana Statehood' the 1969 stir inflicted a heavy damage to the students who reeled under its impact and the intellectual class as well in the region.

The stir was so widespread that the repercussions left most high and dry. Most of all the prestigious and one of the top seats of excellence and research - the Osmania University was downgraded. worse still its certificates were derecognised by most of the popular firms and elsewhere.

Fact remains that some luminaries like d S Reddy, N V Subbarao, Ramachandra Reddy among others carved out a niche for themselves in the academic circles and whose breakthrough lifted OU as one of the outstanding places of learning and research in India.

Some of the departments like Genetics, Bio-Chemistry, Mass Communication and Journalism made a mark and left indelible impression on the visitors. Prominent among the professors was Prof S Bashiruddin who with his innovative style of teaching and research mechanism was instrumental in a 'class' production. The Department under his aegis rose to attain a mark on all India map. In recognition of his services he was made Ambassador of Qatar. After this tenure, he was made VC of an Open University. The Centre for Chemical and Molecular Biology, CCMB earlier, Regional Research Labs ( RRL) was at the centre stage those days.

The stir ruined the intellectuals' prospects so much so that the Hyderabad missed its 'hub' status in the research field which was next only to Bangalore, lamented a scientist. Leave alone forward march, illiteracy did not change a wee bit after November 1, 1956. The Centre's resolve during Indira Gandhi's reign to develop the backward areas in Telangana region did not cut much ice.

On the other hand, under the pretext of 'investments' and integrity the politician of the day indulged in wholesale loot of the treasury ignoring the backwardness and the backward areas in some of the districts of Telangana. The Constituency Development Funds of MPs and MLAs plus Centre's aid were routed mostly to personal accounts.

A look into the Indira's 20-point programme and the allotment of huge funds for lifting the commoner from the morass baffles the reader. The then allotments were in thousands of crores of Rupees. Needless to mention money laundering was rampant and exploitation at its zenith. As part of their clumsy role, Wakf property measuring 829 acres was encashed for Rs 44 crore with the connivance of the high and mighty under YSR's rule.

During the last decade, an estimated more than Rs 1 lakh crore worth Wakf land was also sold away in the districts of Ranga Reddy and Hyderabad throwing to the wind the statutory protection. Ironically the Congress bounced back to power with their traditional vote bank and ally MIM. The MIM Floor Leader Asaduddin Owaisi vociferously harangued on the Floor of the House time and again and asserted that the Wakf property be protected but in vain.

Most of all, the Irani tea or the local Biryani was relished by all and sundry but it also became a thing of the past with prices became winged. The tall claim that this is a pearl city and historic one is
all that remains today as only sweet reminiscences.