Universities across Telangana are monitoring water supplies and asking hostel authorities to reduce consumption amid concerns about a possible shortage in the coming months linked to the El Niño effect, although campuses have reported no immediate disruption so far.
At Osmania University in Hyderabad, university official Radha Krishna said available water was being adjusted to meet requirements. Chief wardens had been instructed to take steps to optimise consumption in anticipation of possible scarcity, he said, adding that the university was following directions issued by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board.
A student, Ranjith, said there had been no water shortage in the university’s hostels so far. The hostels were scheduled to reopen after the Dasara vacation, and the situation would become clearer once students returned to campus, he said. The reopening will provide a larger test of whether existing supplies can meet hostel demand when student occupancy rises.
At Satavahana University in Karimnagar, an official said the campus was receiving water through Mission Bhagiratha. The university would follow government instructions to address any potential shortage if conditions worsened, the official said. The supply arrangement places the campus within the wider state water distribution system rather than relying only on local sources.
The University of Hyderabad has also reported no interruption in hostel water supply. Student Maloth Karteek said water was being supplied as usual and that students would follow government instructions on judicious use if scarcity concerns increased.
The water-supply monitoring comes as campuses prepare for the return of students after the Dasara break. At Osmania University, officials expect the situation to become clearer once hostels are occupied again. The report did not indicate any current restrictions, rationing or disruption at the universities covered.
At Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies in Basar, which operates the IIIT, the university has extended the Dasara holidays for students from PUC-I to E4, citing student welfare and extraordinary circumstances. The decision changes the campus schedule while concerns over water availability are being monitored.
The university has scheduled online classes to begin on October 26. These will use pre-recorded lectures through Google Classroom, along with doubt-clarification sessions every Wednesday and Saturday. Under the revised schedule, PUC-I and PUC-II students are required to report to campus on November 10, while E1 to E4 students must report on November 18.
Revision classes for PUC students are scheduled from November 10 to 18, followed by offline mid-term examinations from November 19 to 21. The university’s revised timetable provides the next formal milestones for assessing when students will return to campus and resume in-person academic activity.
