Mumbai: IIT-B students angry about noise and neglect

Representation Pic/Atul Kamble

Hostel residents at IIT Bombay's campus have expressed concerns over the noise and dust caused by ongoing construction. The administration argues that these projects intend to improve opportunities for upcoming generations, urging current residents to collectively endure the inconvenience for the institution's advancement. Insight, a student-run magazine, has provided detailed coverage of this matter.

Currently, IIT-B has undertaken Project Evergreen to enhance the student's accommodation and hotel facilities. Project Evergreen will replace some of IIT-Bombay's over 50-year-old hostel infrastructure. While corporates can contribute, the first-of-its-kind mainly alumni-led hostel complex will replace hostel Nos. 7 and 8. Meanwhile Hostel 11 also one of the accommodations is undergoing repair after it was found structurally weak.

The campus has experienced substantial growth in student numbers, increasing from 3,000 in the 1970s to almost 13,000 in 2022, with continued expansion in 2023. This led to the conversion of single rooms to double occupancy and the introduction of Hostel 21, part of Project Evergreen, to address the rising student population.

A few students even wrote to the dean and the director of the institutes informing them about the issue, but in vain. "Since H11 hostel, is structurally weak, the administration took up repair work. But why during the semester without relocating students? Despite our requests, we haven't heard back from the authorities We support institute development but feel neglected by the administration."

Another student said: "Living with such high noise levels and constant dust intrusion has become unbearable. Despite multiple emails informing the dean and director, there has been no effort to mitigate the noise or help us. The noise levels consistently exceed 80 dB to 100 dB almost everyday, making it impossible to study, let alone sleep."

A student wrote on Instagram: "Countless times we have woken up to a man knocking on our window or working right outside it without our windows being boarded. The hostel aunties are supposed to be on our floor when men are working, but they are often nowhere to be seen.

Recently a wall on the ground floor was broken down and replaced with a blue plastic sheet. And authorities wonder how predatory men easily break into girls' hostels. Hostel 10 has already had 2 incidents this year where men were found breaking into the hostel, and seeing the way things are handled in this institute, hostel 11 will soon report its cases.

IIT B release statement

"There is a great need to enhance the infrastructure, which includes student hostels, in the campus as the total number of students in the campus has gone up drastically. Quite naturally any such construction leads to some amount of noise and other inconveniences. Campus residents must collectively bear this inconvenience to be able to provide better opportunities to future generations of students."