HYDERABAD: The workers’ fight against the Telugu Cine Workers Cooperative Housing Society’s (TCWCS) irregular allotment of flats in Chitrapuri colony is common knowledge by now. However, it may be noted that the residents here have also been denied of a rightful government school.
The TCWCS decided to lease out the 1.5 acre land meant for a government school, to a private international school. The private school, in fact, has already started operations.
The international school actually serves no purpose for the residents, as most cannot afford the exorbitant fees. As a result, as many as 2,500 children in the area are forced to travel to schools far away. “The society is sacrificing our kids’ right to education for their own commercial benefits,” the residents allege.
According to M Vinod Bala, general secretary of TCWCS, the decision to allocate the land to the private school was taken during a general body meeting. “In the agreement, it was decided that children of the colony will get a rebate of 33 per cent in their fee.
Beyond that, there is nothing we can do. If workers still find the fees high, then they should look for schools which they can afford,” he said. Speaking to Express, Kasturi Srinivas, secretary of Chitrapuri Houses Sadhana Samithi, said: “As per the bylaws, they are supposed to allocate the land to build a government school for the cine workers’ children.”
He alleged that the society members illegally made a land lease for 33 years to an international school. “With this, they made up to `18 crore,” he said, adding that the members were well aware of the fact that the cine workers will not be able to afford the fees.
B Ravi Kiran, resident of Chitrapuri colony, said this was just another injustice meted out to them by the society. “We were all happy to see the society constructing a school. But then, they handed the building to a private school, knowing that we won’t be able to afford the fees,” he said.