The All-India OBC Students Association (AIOBCSA) submitted a representation to Telangana State BC Welfare Minister Gangula Kamalakar and BC Welfare Department Principal Secretary Burra Venkatesham demanding immediate resolution of the long pending issues of BC students in the state.
A group of members from the AIOBCSA including N Saikiran, National Secretary; Kuruva Venkata Das, State General Secretary and other members from the association met the officials at the Dr BR Ambedkar Telangana Secretariat on Tuesday, June 13.
Speaking on this occasion, G Kiran Kumar, AIOBCSA National President, emphasised that full fee reimbursement should be done for BC students studying at the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), All India Institute Of Medical Science (AIIMS), National Institute of Technology (NITs), central universities and other centrally-funded premium Institutions.
Moreover, he also stressed the importance of increasing Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Foreign Education Fund slots to 2,500 every year, establishing Phule Research Centers in all state universities and providing special fellowships to PhD scholars from backward class communities.
Kiran Kumar appealed to the government to provide free laptops along with special internet data schemes to BC PhD students and lastly, to offer special training to BC young entrepreneurs and an opportunity to set up start-ups via T-Hub, the state's innovation ecosystem and incubator.
The association stressed that if these concerns are addressed, BC students in the state will be empowered through a more inclusive educational system.