People's Democracy

DELHI UNIVERSITY

 United Struggle A Must To Get Hostel Problem Solved

 FOR a considerably long time, outstation students who come to join the Delhi University (DU) have been facing the paucity of hostel accommodation; in fact nobody would disagree with the contention that it is the foremost problem confronting them. Moreover, the problem has got compounded because of the rush of students from neighbouring states to the prestigious Delhi University, due to the bad condition of educational infrastructure in these states. These students think joining an educational institution in Delhi is essential for their career advancement, academically and professionally. 

However, because of the limited number of hostel seats offered by DU, sometimes even meritorious students are left out. DU authorities claim they are already aware of this problem. Time and again, the issue of construction of more hostels has been raised by various organisations including the Students Federation of India (SFI). But as of today, due to the callous and non-serious attitude of DU authorities towards this problem, it has assumed disastrous proportions. On top of that, students belonging to various states, especially Haryana and Bihar, fight among themselves instead of fighting for a common cause, that is, for the construction of more hostels. All this leads to heated arguments, use of abusive language and sometimes even physical fighting.

The presence of some persons having their own axe to grind, sometimes adds fuel to the fire. In the past too, some in the hostel students’ union have played a dubious role in this matter. Rather than utilising the platform of students union for the advancement of a common and collective cause, such persons tend to behave in a partisan manner. They tend to misuse the democratic avenues on regional and caste lines. As a result, whichever group is left out of the students union tends to feel marginalised in the hostels too, especially during the admission process. Sometimes it results in regionalism in the name of Haryana or Bihar and, in some cases, if one state has a numerically dominant position, one even sees one caste group pitted against another, which in fact reflects the social divisions prevailing or aggravating in the respective states.

Many a time hostel authorities too, directly or indirectly, boost caste or regional grouping, which is an evil of our society and a part of right wing culture. There have been occasions in the past when hostel authorities belonging to a particular state, rather than checking and tackling the social evils of casteism and regionalism, tended to behave in a partisan manner. On many occasions, while allotting the hostel seats, hostel authorities have displayed undemocratic and non-transparent, highhanded behaviour, which has affected the interest of genuine meritorious students also.

In the whole process, however, common student is the ultimate sufferer. Due to this infighting, the whole issue of paucity of hostel accommodation gets trivialised.

This was the background in which an untoward incident occurred in the Jubilee Hall hostel on September 17. In this hostel, while there is a long queue of hostel seekers, 140 rooms are lying vacant. 

Condemning this incident, the SFI said while cleansing the hostel of old lumpens (babas), illegal occupants and racketeers is correct, the same yardstick cannot be applied to the genuine, registered and meritorious students. The SFI also said the administration has no answer to the question as to why rooms are lying vacant in the said hostel. The totally unsympathetic, autocratic and highhanded behaviour of the authorities is deplorable, the SFI added.

Drawing attention to the prevailing situation, the SFI said if a researcher enrolled in the M Phil programme completes the programme and then applies for the Ph D programme, she or he has to again go through the same procedure for getting hostel accommodation, and has to wait for a new admissions list. This is sheer harassment and nothing else. On the academic ground too, it is totally wrong. For, the Ph D programme in the same field is a continuation of the M Phil programme. Hence the vertical admission criteria should be applicable in such cases.

Secondly, there have been instances in the past when SC/ST students have not been given 22.5 pr cent of the hostel seats, as per the constitution of India. The anti-SC/ST discrimination prevailing in our society may be seen at the level of hostel authorities also. This situation must be rectified immediately, the SFI has demanded.

The SFI is of the opinion that the Delhi University Researchers Association (DURA), which is the collective platform of researchers, must take up the demand of construction of more hostels on priority basis.