Mumbai: In a desperate attempt to woo the Muslim votes ahead of the crucial assembly election, the Congress led government in Maharashtra has decided to push and speed-up the process to establish the Aligarh Muslim University's off-campus centre in the state.
[Hundreds of girl-students had taken part in a post-card campaign to urge then AMU VC Prof PK Abdul Aziz to establish the AMU centre in Malegaon. (ummid.com photo)]
Highly placed sources while talking to ummid.com have disclosed that Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan has called a meeting of his cabinet colleagues Thursday to discuss important issues pertaining to the minorities including various options to make the establishment of the AMU off-campus centre in the state a reality.
The sources said top in the list of the locations for the much publicised AMU off campus centre to be discussed in Thursday's meeting is the 350 acres of land surrounded by hills and touching the Malegaon-Manmad-Pune highway.
The sources further said that the land's location which is just 12 kms from the Manmad Railway Junction and its close proximity to Malegaon – the prominent Muslim dominated city in North Maharashtra, makes it most suitable for the purpose.
The land was also inspected by an AMU team led by then Vice-Chancellor Prof PK Abdul Aziz had on October 26, 2011.The AMU team's visit was followed by a persistent and long campaign run by Noble Education & Welfare Society (NEWS).
"We ran the campaign ever since 2008 when the AMU sent a request to the state government demanding suitable land for the purpose. The government however was unwilling and wasted valuable time. Nonetheless, its good to learn that the government is now planning to speed-up the process to establish the AMU campus centre in Maharashtra", Aleem Faizee, Chairman of NEWS said while talking to ummid.com.
Along with the land near Malegaon, the AMU team had also inspected a land in Khuldabad near Aurangabad. In between, it was also learnt that Prabhani Municipal Council had also offered land to the AMU to establish its centre.
It is also learnt that along with the lands in Malegaon, Aurangabad and Prabhani, land offers are with the state government from some other areas too. But, what makes Malegaon the top contender is its location and absence of any university or engineering and college of professional courses in the area.
"Unlike Aurangabad, which has over 140 colleges of engineering and professional courses besides the Marathwada University, Malegaon is located in the area which does not have a university or big college. Demands are also being made to bifurcate the Pune University and have its centre somewhere in the region. Against this backdrop, it will be the best bet to have the AMU centre in Malegaon" Aleem Faizee said.
The final decision in this regard however rests with the state government, and it will be known only Thursday how serious and forthcoming the government is on the project.
The AMU had in 2008 decided to establish its centres in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Kerala. The centres in Kerala, West Bengal and Bihar are already running.
Comments
| Quick linksNews
National
International
Regional
Politics
Education & Career
Business
Science & Technology
Health
Views & Analysis
The Funny Side
© 2012 Awaz Multimedia & Publications. All rights reserved.
BJP among parties spied upon by US, says report; Uproar in IndiaAnswering queries from media persons here, external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said he had only heard about and not seen the revelations but said it was "extremely disconcerting" that India's privacy laws "concerning an . ... More
Shah Rukh Khan conferred France's highest honourFrench Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius Tuesday conferred his country's highest award - Knight of the Legion of Honour - on Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan in recognition of his.... More
Congress and caste parties decimated, whither Indian Muslims?By giving them frontline roles in communal conflicts, the Sangh Parivar has dignified Mochis, Khatiks (fruit sellers), Lohars (blacksmiths), Nayis (barbers), Valmikis (toilet cleaners), dhobis (laundry washers) in large numbers as Hindutva's foot soldiers..... More
Quality deficit can only be annulled by modern, advanced machines: ExpertsThe skill and talent that the weavers in Malegaon claim to have are being compromised by the outdated and discarded machines that they are using, and if they really want to survive with their ancestor's more than a century-year-old trade, they . .... More
Also Read: 'Show faith in Malegaon weavers, they have potential to return back'