KARIMNAGAR, OCTOBER 28, 2026: The issue of plantation of saplings and beautification works on the campus of Satavahana University in Karimnagar town during severe drought conditions following El Niño impact has raised concerns regarding misuse, diversion and corruption surrounding public environmental funds.
Incidentally, the state government had also declared the Karimnagar and Karimnagar Rural Mandals as drought-affected. But the Satavahana University authorities have decided to take up beautification and plantation of saplings during the El Niño conditions. The authorities had also planned to construct water fountains on the premises by spending a whopping Rs 50 lakhs.
Instead of focusing on improving the academics in the Satavahana University established in the year 2008 and housed in a sprawling 400-acre campus in Karimnagar town, the University authorities are bent upon taking up beautification of the university premises by taking up plantation at a cost of Rs 50 through Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA).
“What is the need to take up massive sapling plantation programmes in unsuitable weather conditions during the El Nino period? It typically exposes the administrative failures and financial irregularities”, allege the Lok Satta Udyama Samstha leaders in Karimnagar town. Planting during a drought provides a perfect cover for low survival rates. Because saplings naturally wither and die without water, they said and added that the university authorities do not have adequate staff to water the saplings planted during the period.
It may be mentioned here that the Satavahana University was beautified by spending several lakhs of rupees during the tenure of former HMDA Commissioner T Chiranjeevulu, who was the in-charge Vice Chancellor in the year 2019. Though the authorities had undertaken massive plantation and beautification through HMDA, it still remained unfulfilled due to poor maintenance and lack of staff and water resources.
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