CUHP construction work likely to begin at Dehra

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, July 14

Dharamsala is likely to lose in terms of hosting the permanent campus of Central University Himachal Pradesh (CUHP).

Sources told The Tribune that the Union government was going to release Rs 500 crores for setting up a permanent campus of CUHP. However, since land allocated at Dharamsala for CUHP has not been transferred in the name of institute, the university administration would start the construction of the campus on the 80-acre land that has already been transferred in name of institute at Dehra.

VC of CUHP, Kuldeep Agnihotri, when contacted, admitted that the Union government was going to soon release Rs 500 crores for setting up permanent campus of the CUHP. He also admitted that about 600-acre land proposed by the state government at Jadrangal in Dharamsala assembly constituency was yet to be transferred in the name of university. He said that 80-acre land proposed at Dehra has already been transferred in the name of the CUHP.

The VC said that on the land that has been transferred in the name of CUHP at Jadrangal they were going to set up a botanical garden.

The location of a permanent campus of the CUHP has been in controversy since the announcement of the institute in 2010. Political leaders have remained involved in a slugfest to take permanent campus of university to their respective area.

While the BJP MP from Hamirpur and Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur had been trying that the campus should come up in Dehra that was part of his constituency, the Congress and BJP leaders from Kangra wanted it to be set up in Dharamsala.

It was finally decided that the CUHP would have two campuses. The headquarters of the university and humanities departments were to be brought up in Dharamsala while the science faculties were to be set up in Dehra.

However, as the land allocated by the state government for the CUHP campus Jadrangal area fell in the forest area permission from Union Ministry for Environment and Forests was required for transferring it in the name of the institute. Besides, the CUHP also wanted that the compensatory cost of transferring the forest land should also be borne by the state government. The case of transfer of Jadrangal land has yet not been processed by the state authorities.

However, in case the work for construction of permanent campus of CUHP starts at Dehra first it is sure to create a political controversy. Congress leaders from Kangra and Dharamsala have been alleging that the Kangra parliamentary constituency was being given step-motherly treatment by the present government. They might make the issue of setting the campus at Dehra first as a political issue against the present state government.

Hurdle for campus at Jadrangal in Dharamsala

• As the land allocated by the state for the CUHP campus, Jadrangal, in Dharamsala assembly constituency fell in the forest area, permission from the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests was required for transferring it in the name of the institute.
• Besides, the CUHP authorities also wanted that the compensatory cost of transferring the forestland should also be borne by the state government.
• The case of transfer of Jadrangal land has yet not even been processed by the state authorities.