Hyderabad, Mar 13 (PTI) Students of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) on Thursday protested against the Telangana government's reported proposal to auction 400 acres of land at Kancha Gachibowli.

Following a protest call by the University of Hyderabad Students' Union (UoHSU), students, faculty members, university staff, and environmental activists gathered at the East Campus and marched to "save" the land, according to a release from the Union.

Also Read | PM Internship Scheme 2025: Registration To Close on This Date, Know How To Apply at pminternship.mca.gov.in and Other Details.

The protesters raised slogans against the Telangana government and held placards that read, "Resist the land grab. Reclaim our university and Save the rocks."

A UoHSU leader stated the Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Limited recently announced the auction of 400 acres of land in Kancha Gachibowli.

Also Read | Blood Moon Total Lunar Eclipse 2025 Date and Time: Is It Chandra Grahan on Holi in India? Everything To Know About the Celestial Event in March.

The land includes the Mushroom Rock area within the University of Hyderabad, near its East Campus. He added that this would lead to the loss of university land as well as the biodiversity of Hyderabad.

However, a UoH official clarified that the land has been owned by the state government since 1974 and was never transferred to the university.

The UoHSU stated that students, along with environmental activists and others, have raised several concerns regarding the auction.

"This land currently falls within the premises of the University of Hyderabad. It is deeply concerning that the university has no say in what happens to these 400 acres. The Telangana government's decision to auction the land to private players without consulting the university suggests an intention to accelerate privatisation," the UoHSU release said.

The UoHSU demanded that the Telangana government immediately halt the auction process at Mushroom Rocks, constitute a team of experts to assess the area's ecological significance, and transfer legal ownership of the land to the university.

The union also organised a sapling plantation event at the protest site to symbolically highlight the area's ecological importance.

Additionally, it was decided to form a Joint Action Committee comprising representatives from the Students' Union, the Teaching Association, and the Workers' Union.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)