Hostel crunch in DU colleges causes students to seek private accommodation

With the cutoffs for undergraduate courses at Delhi University scheduled to release on Friday, students from outsided Delhi are worried about finding affordable accommodation, amidst security concerns.

The competition does not end merely with securing a seat in a good college; it extends to the struggle of finding a seat in a hostel as well. The hostel crunch at the University has led the students to seek alternative accommodations in the city.

According to the official website of the University, only 14 of its 64 colleges provide hostel accommodation for their students.

Deepak, a student of Aryabhatta College, exclaims: "The rooms here (in Satya Niketan) are too costly. I have to pay Rs 6,500 per month. Most probably, I will be shifting to Lajpat Nagar. where I am getting a one room set at Rs 3,000 per month."

Most of the landlords in Satya Niketan and its vicinity hire brokers to deal with students to rent out paying guest (PG) accomodations.

Usually, the rates start from Rs 6,000 and go up to Rs 12,000 and above for a month.

Jitin Aggarwal, a PG broker at Satya Niketan, charges the brokerage at "the amount for 20 days of the total rent of one month."

Though cheaper PGs are available, they are in poor conditions. Aditi, a student of Sri Venkateswara College, says she found a PG at Rs. 5,500 and that too without the help of a broker.

Kawalpreet Kaur, a student at DU's Law Faculty and leader of the DU unit of All India Students' Association, told Millennium Post: "Last year, we launched the campaign 'A Room of My Own' to demand more hostel accommodations for students."

"We submitted memorandums to principals of various colleges, but the response was not satisfactory. Our other demands were for provision of students' house rent allowance (HRA), until they are not provided with the hostel accommodations. The next demand is to regulate The Delhi Rent Act. We will take this campaign ahead among the new students until our demands are fulfilled," Kaur added.

Section 33 of the Delhi University Act clearly directs the University to provide accommodation to every student.

The University received Rs 300 crore from the University Grants Commission (UGC) to enhance its infrastructure, of which Rs 105 crore lapsed due to non usage of the funds.

The University had earlier proposed a hostel at its vacant land in Dwarka, but no move has been initiated to materialise the proposal.

"We have protested time and again and even talked with the Chief Minister of Delhi to implement the Room Rent Control Act (The Delhi Rent Act)," said Amit Tanwar, president of Delhi University Students Union