Kishanganj, Dec. 28: The state government and Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) would seal the land deal this Friday for the varsity’s special centre in the district.
The AMU vice-chancellor, P.K. Abdul Aziz, and Kishanganj district magistrate and collector Sandeep Kumar R. Pudakalkatti, on behalf of the state government, will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the land transfer. A contiguous land of 224.02 acres in the Mauza Chakala village and Gobindpur village under Kishanganj circle has been earmarked for setting up the special centre of the AMU.
Confirming the development, state education minister P.K. Shahi said: “On December 30, a MoU will be signed between AMU and Pudakalkatti, who has been assigned to sign the MoU by the state government.”
Pudakalkatti told The Telegraph: “The MoU will be signed at the office of the district magistrate. Officials from AMU and the district administration will be present. I have been empowered to sign the land transfer document, for which a team led by the vice-chancellor of AMU would arrive in Kishanganj on December 29.”
AMU vice-chancellor Aziz will arrive in the district tomorrow on a three-day trip. Other varsity officials, including registrar V.K. Abdul Jalil, dean of faculty of management studies and research Javed Akhtar, finance officer Yasmin Jalal Beg, media advisor NAK Durani and principal of Zakir Hussain College of Engineering (under AMU) Ikram Hussein will accompany him.
Pudakalkatti said: “The varsity officials had proposed to sign the MoU between December 29 and December 31. We chose December 30.”
The varsity had demanded a single contiguous land from the state government for its special centre. The state government was offering segmented lands, clashing with the varsity’s requirements. In October, around 1 lakh demonstrators under Kishanganj Education Movement had pushed for an extended unit of the varsity. Now, the dream is close to fulfilment.
Kishanganj Education Movement convener Safi Ahmad said: “A team led by the deputy registrar of legal cell of AMU, Arifuddin Ahmad, had come for an on-spot verification of the plot on December 20. He expressed his pleasure over the piece of land being provided by the state government. Arifuddin expects that some departments would start by July 2012, as the varsity would have ample time by then to complete all the formalities required to start the session in July.”
Sources said after the MoU is signed, the documents would be sent to the Union human resource development ministry, which would forward the file to the President for approval. Once the varsity gets the President’s nod, the Centre will release funds to the AMU for the construction on the land earmarked in Kishanganj.
