08 April,2011 06:01 AM IST | | Alifiya Khan
Despite large monetary allocation for their upkeep, hostels run by Pune varsity are overcrowded, infested with bed bugs, have open sewers and serve insipid food
Rs 1.5 crore. That's the whopping sum of money reportedly allocated every year by the University of Pune (UoP) for the purpose of refurbishing the 16-odd hostels for boys and girls run by the university. Despite this substantial sum of promised money, however, students are dissatisfied with the squalid, unhygienic living conditions in the hostels and their lack of basic amenities.
Found wanting:u00a0Mercury lights are missing on the boys' hostel premises
There are not enough garbage bins outside the hostel and so the existing
ones are overflowing
Sorry state of affairs:u00a0The leaking pipelines outside the boys hostel
Emit a foul stench; pipelines outside boys hostel
Too many boys and too few toilets is the situation at the boys hostelu00a0
students have to sun their books
Sleeping mats and beds to get rid of bed bugs in hostel rooms;
Students hang their clothes to dry in corridors close to electric supply
points for want of space
Students have lodged protests with the authorities, complaining that the UoP never makes good on its promise to spend crores of money each year on maintenance. To find out the real story behind these protests, MiD DAY paid a visit to these hostels. Here's what we found:
Wasteland
The situation looked bleak; from cramped quarters, overcrowding, bed bugs to undisposed garbage and poor quality food, the hostels are indeed in a deplorable condition.
Inadequate rooms
This problem afflicts seven of the eight boys' hostels. Students complain that at least forty percent of students who applied for rooms have been denied accommodation. They are often made to stay unofficially as 'guests' of the varsity, and not officially as its bonafide students. "The university must construct new hostel buildings or and add floors to existing ones," complained a second year MA student who lives in boys' hostel number 3.
Bed bugs
Students are having sleepless nights, as their quarters are infested with bed bugs. "Every weekend we waste hours lugging our bedding and books into the sun," complained a student of the Physics department. This is a problem that is so pervasive in the hostels that it was made the subject of second year Mass Communication student's annual project. The general angst among the students is made clear in hard-hitting title that he gave to his short film -'Welcome to Hell.'
Lack of lockers
None of the rooms have secure lockers. This has led to rampant cases of petty thefts. Complaints have fallen on deaf ears and the incidents continue unabated. Lack of drinking water: More than 250 girls who live in hostel L8 are forced to walk two buildings away, just to obtain drinking water, as the newly constructed building lacks a water filter.u00a0
Few toilets
Both boys and girls complained that toilets are few and far between. Alarmingly, the girls' hostels have only two common toilets, to be shared between 50-60 girls. The ratio is even more shocking in the boys' hostels.
Uncovered drains
There are broken pipes spilling sewage water right outside the windows of ground floor rooms, spreading unbearable stench all around.
No garbage disposal
The entire vicinity is strewn with undisposed garbage, which students claimed hadn't been cleared for months. "The stench goes up to two floors" said an M Phil student.
Lack of security
Boys complained that the hostels are devoid of streetlights or mercury lights. The premises are very dark at night, making it impossible to check the entry of intruders.
Poor quality food
The food sold in the mess is of neither nutritious, nor tasty. "The dal is too watery. The food tastes insipid," complained the students.
The Other Side
Bhaskar Shejwal, chief rector of the UOP hostels, admitted that some problems exist. "As far as inadequate accommodation is concerned, we know that 20 percent of the students who applied for rooms haven't received them. They are staying on as guests. We are trying to accommodate them. Where safety measures are concerned, we are getting mercury lights for the boys' hostels. We are also getting a drinking-water filter and cooler each for all floors in the girls' hostels," he promised. However, he did admit to a delay in fixing the leaking pipes due to lack of coordination with the estate department.
