BHOPAL : Repeated assurances of improving hygiene and living condition of hostels by officials of Barkatullah University proved naught as boarders continue to live in filth in the facilities.
Fed up with the apathy of the university, the aggrieved students on Friday staged a sit-in at the administrative block of the university.
Tragically, the protest took place just a week after registrar UN Shukla assured the boarders of improving conditions during his surprise inspection visit to the boys’ hostels along with all the wardens. Despite his assurance nothing has changed on ground; but rather deteriorated as apart from sanitation problems and ill-maintenance of basic facilities, the students are now faced with inadequate supply of water.
BU student union (BUSU) president Swapnil Patel informed Free Press that “We have complained about the problems in our hostels to the university officials multiple times but as no actions were taken we decided to hold protest. However, the vice chancellor in charge assured us of immediate action.”
Notably, the boarders have been struggling with poor hygiene and living conditions in all the six hostels of the BU. Toilets, corridors, drinking water facilities, common rooms and boys hostels’ mess remains strewn with filth most of the time with no proper cleaning schedule in place. The stairs are covered with paan and gutkha stains. Besides, with approaching summer water scarcity has added to the woes.
The situation is no different in three girls’ hostels of the university as well. Boarders here too have complained about the issues to the university registrar about two months ago, but equal official apathy applied in their case as well.
General secretary of the BUSU, Sudha Kushwa, who was also one of the aggrieved hostellers, informed Free Press that condition of the hostels worsened over time. “We have been demanding for improving the facilities for quite a long time, but it didn’t happen,” she rued.
However, on being contacted by Free Press to get his side of the story, audibly annoyed BU registrar Shukla said “Do you think people from Bagmugalia come to the hostels to flirt around and make it dirty? The students themselves make the environment dirty.”
“We have dedicated staffs who clean the areas as best as possible. I have also asked the department concerned to purchase RO’s for supplying pure drinking water and improve the condition in hostels at the earliest,” added Shukla.
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