In Hyderabad, a conflict has erupted between University of Hyderabad (UoH) students and the administration over hostel accommodation conditions. Students have raised long-standing issues including poorly maintained rooms, unhygienic mess facilities, substandard food quality, inadequate drinking water, and neglected washrooms, fans, and electrical fittings. Tensions escalated when the chief warden instructed 60 PhD students from the 2018 batch to vacate due to room shortages.
University regulations stipulate a nominal per-semester room rent of Rs 500 for open-category students, while SC/ST students receive free lodging during academic sessions. However, additional fees imposed during summer vacations—Rs 1,000 for open category, Rs 800 for OBC, and Rs 500 for SC/ST—have drawn criticism from students as unjustifiable.
The accommodation crunch is not confined to vacations but also affects regular academic sessions, with insufficient hostel space for the growing student population. The campus currently has 23 hostels accommodating approximately 4,500 students, inadequate for the over 5,000 new admissions each year, exacerbated by the introduction of new courses without corresponding hostel expansions.
Despite repeated representations by students to address these issues, they allege the chief warden has been dismissive and unresponsive. Ateeq Ahmed, president of the UoH students’ union, stated, "We've been demanding discussions and solutions for over two months, but the responses have been cold and dismissive." The students are now calling for the chief warden's resignation and plan to stage a protest starting July 18, citing increased difficulties under the new warden's tenure.