Bifurcation has begun at the Haj House (HH) after the government suggested two proposals for the division of agencies under the minorities’ welfare department (MWD).
The 11-storey Haj House building houses in its two blocks offices of the AP State Wakf Board (APSWB), AP State Minority Finance Corporation (APSMFC), AP State Haj Committee (APSHC) and Urdu Academy (UA).
According to MWD official requesting anonymity, “Planning has gained momentum in the last three days. The APSMFC is in the west block and occupies the fifth and sixth floors. There are deliberations about allotting the fifth floor for Telangana and the sixth for Seemandhra region.”
He further said that the Urdu Academy, which functions from just one floor, would also be divided accordingly.
The APSHC too would be divided in a similar fashion, another source said. “The committee operates from the second and third floors of the building. Plans are afoot to move the Telangana haj committee on the second floor and the haj committee for the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh on the third floor,” the source added.
Instructions have been given to the officials to categorise the records as Telangana and Andhra Pradesh by May 15, the source added. “The process will be completed before June 2,” he said.
Meanwhile, the second proposal rummages around to identify separate office spaces for agencies belonging to Andhra Pradesh, while retaining those for Telangana in the Haj House.
But, officials pointed out that the proposal has not met with much success and is facing difficulty on account of the marked difference between rents at prevailing market rates and those fixed by the government. “All enquiries point to rates between Rs.20 and Rs.30 per square foot. We are unable to go ahead as the prescribed government rate is Rs.10 per square foot,” a source said.
When contacted, Shaik Mohammed Iqbal, Commissioner for Minorities said: “As is the case with other agencies, we are dividing staff and liabilities. The ratio is 58 per cent for Andhra Pradesh and 42 per cent for Telangana. The modalities will be worked out later.”