Uniform detention policy for engineering courses still pending in Telangana

Despite government assurances, Telangana has not implemented a uniform detention policy for engineering and professional courses. Universities continue with varied rules, causing confusion among students. The Higher Education Minister had promised a common system for 2025-26, but no decision has been taken yet.

Hyderabad: Despite repeated appeals from students, academic experts and even legislators, a uniform detention system in professional education, including engineering, still remains a distant dream for students in the State.

With each university following its own rules, there is a wide-spread concern among students and parents alike.

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Currently, Osmania University and Mahatma Gandhi University have been following stringent promotion norms, requiring a minimum of 50 percent of the total prescribed credits to move on from first year to second year in an engineering programme.

Further, these universities students must pass 75 percent of their prescribed credits in second year to get promotion eligibility to third year. The bar is set even higher in the third year where students must secure 83.3 percent of the credits to be eligible for promotion to final year engineering.

Failing to secure requisite credits or not maintaining a minimum of 75 percent of the attendance will lead to detention in the same year.

However, the Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) – Hyderabad and Kakatiya University have been following liberal policy for promoting students. These universities have placed a mandate of securing a minimum of 25 percent of prescribed credits for promotion.

There has been a demand for a standardized system for implementation of detention and promotion policy in the State.

Responding to the issue raised by MIM legislator Akbaruddin Owaisi in the Assembly, Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha had said the detention policy was exempted for the academic year 2024-25 and a common detention policy would be brought from the academic year 2025-26.

Although the Minister chaired a meeting with higher education department and university officials concerned, the issue persists even as the fresh academic year 2025-26 commenced.

“So far, two meetings were conducted but no decision has been taken yet,” a senior TGCHE official said.

• Credits to completed for promotion, else detained
• I year to II year (40 credits for two semesters)
• – Osmania University: 20 credit (50 percent)
• – JNTU-Hyderabad: 10 (25 percent)
• – Kakatiya University: 25 percent
• – Mahatma Gandhi University 19 (50 percent)
• II year to III (80 credits for four semesters)
• – Osmania University: 60 (75 percent)
• – JNTU-Hyderabad: 20 (25 percent)
• – Kakatiya University: 25 percent
• – Mahatma Gandhi University: 42 (50 percent)
• III year to IV year (120 credits for six semesters)
• – Osmania University: 100 (83.3 percent)
• – JNTU-Hyderabad: Automatic promotion
• – Kakatiya University: 25 percent
• – Mahatma Gandhi University: 64 (50 percent)

The Telangana Private Degree and PG Colleges Management Association (TPDPMA) urged the State government to revise the detention rule for the degree programmes, with a minimum of 25 percent credits requirement for promotion to the next year.

Releasing results based on the old detention criteria, requiring 50 percent credits for promotion, is causing concerns and uncertainty among students and institutions alike, B Suryanarayana Reddy, president TPDPMA.

Reducing credits to 25 will ensure uniformity across institutions and help prevent academic loss for thousands of students who may otherwise face detention, he said.