Telangana Polytechnic Students Protest Against GO 97 in Hyderabad and Mahabubabad

Polytechnic students stepped up demonstrations across Telangana on Wednesday against GO 97, staging protests at Ramanthapur, Secunderabad, West Marredpally, and Mahabubabad. The agitation prompted the Students' Federation of India to call for a statewide polytechnic bandh on Thursday.

In Hyderabad, students gathered on campus at the Government Polytechnic in Ramanthapur, while women students held a demonstration at Sangeet X Roads. Another group demonstrated at the Government Institute of Electronics in Secunderabad. In West Marredpally, an ABVP-backed road protest took place outside the Government Polytechnic College, leading Tukaram Gate police to take several ABVP leaders into custody after protesters moved onto the thoroughfare.

The demonstrations stem from administrative changes placing polytechnic institutions under the SHAKTI department and Young India Skills University. Students and parents fear the restructuring could impact the State Board of Technical Education and Training and future lateral entry routes into undergraduate engineering programmes via ECET.

Tensions escalated outside the Mahabubabad Collectorate when police stopped students attempting to enter the premises. Video footage showed police personnel pushing protesters back during the confrontation, with students accusing police of using physical force.

SFI Osmania University vice-president Manchala Kiran Kumar confirmed that Thursday's bandh would remain limited to polytechnic colleges across the state. Student groups expressed apprehension that the public-private partnership model of the skills university could compromise academic pathways and higher education opportunities for diploma holders.