University of Hyderabad students protest for ePASS scholarship recipients to register for semesters without upfront fee payments - The HinduUpdated - August 20, 2026 08:09 pm IST - HYDERABADUniversity of Hyderabad. File | Photo Credit: RAMAKRISHNA GStudents belonging to several organisations at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) continued their protest on Thursday (August 20, 2026) demanding that students covered under the Telangana ePASS scholarship scheme be allowed to complete semester registration without paying tuition and hostel fees upfront.‘Scholarship covers tuition and maintenance fees’“The scholarship covers tuition and maintenance fees, with the scholarship amount being reimbursed by the government through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). Students who cannot afford to pay tuition and mess fees from their own pockets are being prevented from completing semester registration while waiting for the scholarship amount,” said a note from the students.The protest was organised by the Ambedkar Students’ Association (ASA), Bahujan Students’ Front (BSF), Dalit Students’ Union (DSU), Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and Tribal Students’ Forum (TSF). The organisations said hundreds of students depend on TS ePASS scholarships to pursue higher education at the university.With August 20 set as the last date for semester registration and no concrete resolution from the university administration, they said the protest would continue until the issue is resolved.The dispute centres on the implementation of the State government’s guidelines on post-matric scholarships. The students said Telangana issued G.O.Ms.No. 6 on September 6, 2024 for SC students and subsequently expanded the framework to ST, BC, EBC, minority and differently-abled students across post-matric courses from the 2026-27 academic year through G.O.Ms.No. 9 dated June 6. “Under the DBT model, tuition and other eligible fees are to be paid by the student to the institution from the scholarship amount credited to the student’s Aadhaar-seeded bank account, with the student required to remit the payment to the institution within seven working days of receiving the amount.” the students said.Other demandsThe students have also sought implementation of the seven-working-day fee remittance window after the scholarship amount is credited to students’ bank accounts, alignment of the semester registration schedule with the DBT disbursal timeline, and an immediate extension of the registration deadline.Published - August 20, 2026 05:59 pm ISTSign in to unlock member-only benefits!Access 10 free stories every monthSave stories to read laterAccess to comment on every storySign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single clickGet notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products${ ind + 1 } ${ device }Last active - ${ la }