Punjab Govt to grant status of state university for two engineering colleges

Chandigarh: The Punjab government on Friday decided to accord the status of the state university to two engineering colleges located in Ferozepur and Gurdaspur and also approved Rs 45 crore to these institutes for the next three years.

A decision to this effect was taken by the state cabinet under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh. The Bills by which the two colleges will get the status of state-level universities will be tabled in the ongoing budget session of the assembly, an official release said here.

Shaheed Bhagat Singh State Technical Campus, Ferozepur and Beant College of Engineering and Technology, Gurdaspur, would be upgraded as Shaheed Bhagat Singh State University, Ferozepur and Sardar Beant Singh State University, Gurdaspur, respectively, it said. The up-gradation of these engineering colleges as state universities would enable both these institutes to start multidisciplinary courses with their existing infrastructure, the release said.

The Finance Department has approved a grant of Rs 45 crore initially for the next three years (Rs 15 crore/year) for each of the two universities, which will be mentored by the Indian Institute of Technology Ropar to attract students, it said.

Technical education in border areas

These two institutes, set up in 1994 by the state government, have played a major role in the development of technical education in the border areas of the state.

They are run by the societies registered under the Societies Registration Act of 1860 and all their affairs are looked after by a board of governors constituted by the state government, it stated. The Cabinet also gave go-ahead to introduce the Punjab Abadi Deh (Record of Right) Bill, 2021, in the ongoing budget session.

The move is aimed at helping the state government to compile a record of the rights of properties within the boundaries of the villages, the release said. In a bid to eliminate red-tapeism and promote effective administration of public affairs, the Cabinet also okayed the Punjab Anti-Red Tape Bill to be tabled in the ongoing budget session of Vidhan Sabha for enactment, it said.

Part of the government's reforms agenda for improving the delivery of services to the public and ease of doing business to industry, the Bill contains a provision to reduce the cost and burden of compliances on citizens and businesses, through simplified, trust-based procedures that would expedite processes and make governance efficient.

The Cabinet also gave the approval to release payment of Rs 36.70 crore to the Punjab Agro Foodgrains Corporation (PAFC) on account of administrative charges for the work done by it during the Rabi Marketing Season.

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