Phase I of DK’s Veterinary College to be completed in December

Mangaluru: The Government Veterinary College and Hospital in Koila, about 60 km from here, is likely to be completed in December. The project that took off in 2016, was delayed due to a shortage of funds, the Covid-19 pandemic and other reasons, for more than three years.
The college was announced by chief minister D V Sadananda Gowda in his 2012-13 budget. The foundation stone for the state-of-the-art facility on 247 acres, was laid in October 2016, and the work was expected to be completed by 2018. This would be Karnataka’s seventh veterinary college.
Dr C S Nagaraj, dean, Veterinary College, Bengaluru, and official on special duty (OSD), Veterinary College, Koila, told TOI that Rs 110 crore was earmarked for the first phase of the project. However, till date, they have received only about Rs 81.7 crore from the state government. Currently 80% of the first phase work has been completed. Despite the fund crunch, work is in progress at the site. The project was also delayed due to the monsoon, shortage of sand and the lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. “We are hopeful to complete the first phase of work by December, and hand it over to the department,” Nagaraj said, adding there is also a second phase of work.
The first phase of the project consists of the college building, hospital, guest house and two hostels. The hostels can accommodate 144 inmates each.
In the second phase of the project, Dr Nagaraj said that it will have an animal farm, laboratory, roads, boundary wall, staff quarters and many other facilities. “We are finalising the second phase project details,” he said.
Officials from the Karnataka Housing Board said the entire campus and facilities are designed according to stipulated norms of the Veterinary Council of India (VCI).
Currently, the state has five veterinary colleges functioning in Bengaluru, Hassan, Shivamogga, Gadag and Bidar. Two more colleges are coming up in Athani and Koila.