The University of Hyderabad’s proposal to hike tuition fees from the new semester starting in January has not gone down well with students’ organisations. In its recent Academic Council meeting, the university had proposed to double tuition fees besides affecting steep hikes in hostel charges, mess charges and other maintenance

charges. At present, the fee for general category students per semester is `3,850, while it is `2,150 for reserved category students. The varsity has proposed to hike the tuition fees for the general category to `9,000 and to `5,650 for reserved quota students. It has also proposed to collect an additional `4,000 towards hostel, mess and other maintenance charges.Strongly opposing the proposal, student organisations, meanwhile, have threatened to launch an agitation if the university goes ahead with the fee hike. They said that students from economically and socially backward classes would be adversely affected if the fees were raised.
While the university said that the fee hike was aimed to mobilise funds, the students wanted the UGC to provide additional grants to the University of Hyderabad.Students’ organisations such as Bahujan Students Federation, Dalit Students Union and Students Federation of India said that majority of the varsity’s students came from backward classes, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and they would not be in a position to bear the excess fees. They have, instead, asked the university to adopt the low fee structure being implemented at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi. Cost of education to get dearer? Proposal to hike fee for general category from `3,850 to `9,000 Fees for reserved quota likely to be hiked from `2,150 to `5,650 With the University of Hyderabad proposing to double tuition fees from the new semester starting in January, students' organisations like the Bahujan Students Federation, Dalit Students Union and Students Federation of India have strongly opposed the move. “We have registered our protest against the fee hike with university officials. The vice-chancellor has constituted a committee with officials and students to discuss the issue and has assured us that any decision on fee hike will be taken based on suggestions given by the committee,“ said Mr Chandraiah, a student leader of the BSF. The new semester is scheduled to commence from January 2 and the students have no idea yet about the fees in spite of the fact that need to pay the fees as soon as the semester starts.