The Telangana state government issued Government Order 97, proposing to integrate the state's 31 polytechnic colleges into the newly created Young India Skills University (YISU). The move is framed as a step toward a unified skill‑development ecosystem, but it would dissolve the existing Technical Education Department's oversight of polytechnics and the State Board of Technical Education and Training (SBTET).
The Telangana Polytechnic Joint Action Committee (JAC), a coalition of faculty, students and alumni, publicly opposed the merger on August 28, 2026. In a statement, the JAC argued that the polytechnics' long‑standing autonomy, curriculum relevance, and industry linkages would be jeopardised. It called for the immediate withdrawal of GO 97 and urged the continuation of polytechnics and SBTET under the current Technical Education Department framework.
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State Education Minister K. T. Rama Rao responded that the proposal is still under review and that stakeholder feedback will be considered before any final decision. No formal amendment to GO 97 has been announced, and the department has scheduled a consultative meeting with JAC representatives for early September.
