Vijayawada: Speculation over setting up of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister’s camp office on the campus of Acharya Nagarjuna University has caused uneasiness among faculty, students and other local residents.
“The university has been expecting an upgradation to the central university status for several years. At this stage, if the campus becomes the seat of administration, it will hurt the university’s growth. Officials are reportedly thinking of even shifting the university to some other place outside the district. If it happens, thousands of teaching and non-teaching staff have to suffer,” said an assistant professor, on condition of anonymity.
ANU staff began raise concerns after media reports suggested that Chief Minister-designate N. Chandrababu Naidu prefers to locate his camp office in Guntur to bring the administration as a precursor to setting up the capital in the region.
Students aver that they would face severe problems due to security arrangements for the chief minister in and around the campus.
However, ANU vice-chancellor Prof. K. Viyanna Rao feigned ignorance about any such move. “None of us in the university has so far got any information or instructions from the government in this regard,” Prof. Rao explained, without Prof. Viyanna Rao refused to comment on the future prospects of students and faculty if the government decides to take over the campus.
The newly-constructed administrative block of the university is expected to be used as the CM’s camp office and other blocks in the university will be used for various other departments as the campus, with plug and play buildings, is located centrally between Vijayawada and Guntur.
The varsity was established in the erstwhile PG centre of Andhra University in 1976 and was later moved to the 300-acre land, which was voluntarily contributed by villagers of Khaza and Namburu.
