Hyderabad: HYDRAA and TGBIE Plan Integrated System To Verify Junior College Fire NOCs After Fake Certificate Row
The association’s representatives also shared their views and feedback: Reports
HYDERABAD: Fire safety checks at private junior colleges would be more closely monitored, with HYDRAA and the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (TGBIE) planning a joint system to verify fire no-objection certificates from the next academic year.
The decision came at a meeting on Tuesday between HYDRAA commissioner A.V. Ranganath, TGBIE secretary Abhilasha Abhinav and managements of private junior colleges. Student safety, fire safety guidelines and fire NOC verification were discussed with officials and the Telangana Private Junior College Managements Association (TPJMA). The association’s representatives also shared their views and feedback.
This comes weeks after HYDRAA found forged fire-safety certificates among NOCs submitted by junior colleges. In a verification of 142 certificates from the Telangana Core Urban Region, 90 were found genuine and 52 forged. HYDRAA subsequently informed the Intermediate Board and sought action against the institutions concerned. Police have also registered cases against eight private junior colleges over allegedly forged Fire NOCs. The certificates were submitted as part of the affiliation process.
From the next academic year, the fire department and TGBIE will introduce integrated software to make fire NOC verification easier. Workshops and minimum safety guidelines for educational institutions were also discussed at Tuesday’s meeting. HYDRAA and TGBIE said they had prepared an action plan to work jointly on student safety.
A series of follow-up meetings will also be held to address Fire NOCs, ensure strict implementation of fire safety measures and examine other critical safety issues in educational institutions. The agencies plan active follow-up to prevent untoward incidents. TGBIE said colleges would have to adhere to statutory safety requirements and linked the exercise to transparency and accountability in the affiliation process.
