From when it was founded in the year 1918 to now, close to one crore students have graduated from Osmania University. The numbers may be astonishing, but it is a known fact that the university has produced several eminent personalities. Shivraj Patil, P. V. Narasimha Rao, Jaipal Reddy, N. Kiran Kumar Reddy and C. Vidyasagar Rao, among other accomplished politicians, bureaucrats, doctors, etc., form the alumni of the university.
Now, to give back to the society, the Osmania University Alumni Committee is planning to adopt 100 villages across 10 districts in Telangana, marking 100 years of the university. The villages will be called Osmania Modern Villages.
This village adoption was the idea of Shyam Mohan Anantula, chairman of the committee. “Over 20,000 alumni have been invited to take part in the celebrations. It’s a festive atmosphere. Many of the alumni have been thanking me for getting them together, after almost four decades! I’m an MBA graduate from OU too. God has been kind to most of us as we got to know that we’re all doing well in our lives. So I thought this is the time to give back. How much can the government do? With high population in our country, we, as citizens, need to help each other.
Shyam Mohan Anantula, chairman, OU Alumni Committee
“I then discussed the idea with others in the committee and we unanimously decided to adopt these villages. Different villages have different needs, so we’re identifying the needs first. The alumni, OU and other experts will be appointed to help the people. We’re also getting in touch with the local alumni in these districts, to make the process easier. We’ll work with district collectors in selecting the villages. Also, we’re all pooling in the money,” he says, adding, “It may not solve 100 per cent of their problems, but I’ll be glad if I can even solve 50 per cent of their problems.”
R.V. Ram Mohan Rao, member of the alumni committee, says, “It feels great to do this. We’re going to help people with sanitation, education and water among other things.” Guduru Satyanarayana, another member, adds, “Almost 50 years back, I was at OU. Now, through the university, I want to help people as much as I can. We will develop infrastructure and rebuild schools and colleges in rural areas.”
