Hyderabad: Tweet puts college and OU officials on the mat

Hyderabad: Are the college and university hostel allocations turning into a mess in Telangana?

If the goings-on are any indication, following the Nizam College hostel allotment fiasco, students of one college after another are up in arms against the college and university administrations.

According to sources, a simple tweet from Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K T Rama Rao on humanitarian grounds to look into allocation of hostel to under-graduate girls students of Nizam College has left both the college and university administrations high and dry.

The minister had shown generosity by allocating Rs 5 crore to build a new post-graduate hostel at Nizam College. This was done at the college's request.

He also directed officials not to bother the college when there was a proposal for adding an additional floor that needed more funds. The additional floor was proposed to create accommodation for more students. The minister had decided to release another Rs 3 crore for the same.

Speaking to The Hans India, a senior official ofthe college said the hostel was meant for post-graduate girl students staying in the hostel on the Osmania University campus, but, studying at Nizam College.

The main problem they faced was difficulty in reaching the OU campus changing two buses to take lunch and go back to college within an hour. The majority sufferers say they take breakfast in the morning and attend classes. Most of the sufferers are science students; they need to stay in college till evening for their lab classes.

To address this issue, the college had requested KTR to sanction a hostel. However, "the university and the college are at the receiving end as the hostel could not accommodate more than around 270 students. We cajoled and reasoned with students to adjust during the last academic year. We had adjusted five-six students in a room that is meant to accommodate four, " the official added.

This year too, he said, "we have been trying to see students do not face any problem, like last year. But, all of a sudden, the under-graduate students started protests and tweeted to KTR. The minister responded with good intention to look into it."

However, what transpired has gone out of the hands of the college and university authorities with the intervention of Education Minister Sabita Indra Reddy. As desired by the government, the new hostel was allocated to under-graduate students. This triggered restlessness among students of other colleges who are scouting for college-run accommodation, he added.

There is a lack of sufficient hostel accommodation in every State university, and post-graduate college, including the Women's College, Koti. This is so for the past 15-20 years. It is the faculty, college and university officials who regularly interact with students on day-to-day basis.

"We should be allowed to deal with such issues when we are not in a position to provide accommodation for all. If ministers and higher-ups in the Education department directly involve themselves, we will have no say with students. But, we have to face repercussions," said another faculty member of Nizam College.