Necessity the mother of accommodation

By Lakshmi Balakrishnan

NEW DELHI, JULY 10. It doesn't matter whether you are from Shimla, Patna or Kolkata. For students who have just stepped into the wings of Delhi University, this is the nearest they can get to ``feeling at home''.

Breaking strict bedtime regulations is easier here and so is smuggling in a friend for the night. But these are not about the only reasons that make small paying guest hostels such a big success in residential areas near the university's North and South campuses. With very few colleges in Delhi having hostel facilities, most outstation students have to look for alternate accommodation near the campus.

No wonder having a house anywhere near the campus is a boon for the owners. For while most colleges have to go through the rigours of getting approval from the University Grants Commission and clearances from civic bodies for the building plan and construction, PG accommodation owners use the easier way out.

Since getting a licence is a ``problem'', most owners advertise themselves as hostels in colleges but continue to exist as PG accommodation housing a dozen-odd students on one floor.

``Building a hostel is not really easy. One has to get clearance for everything from plan to construction. Moreover, keeping the civic body people happy is no easy job. We advertise ourselves as hostels, but only to catch the attention of students. Running a PG accommodation makes much more sense,'' says Mr. Rajeev Kalra, who has been running one in Mukherjee Nagar for years now.

Most PG premises prefer to house girls rather than boys as it is considered ``less risky''. Though most places provide food and other services, the quality is often found wanting. There is, yes, the ``near campus, homelike atmosphere'' that students are promised, but very often eight to ten students have to stay in one big hall. One such Mukherjee Nagar accommodation has nearly 40 students staying in the three-storey building.

A number of students prefer to stay in such premises as these provide more freedom and facilities than regular college hostels. But there are those who would rather stay by the strict rules of a university hostel.

``Since I am used to a rather disciplined way of life followed by my school hostel in Dehra Dun, I would prefer to stay in the university hostel. Being new to the place, I guess it would be better for me, but then Hindu College, where I have taken admission, does not have a girls' hostel,'' says Megha Mittal, now planning to move to a private accommodation.

Some colleges are also planning to make it mandatory for students to submit proof of residence in the form of letters from the local police and the house owner. ``We were unable to build a hostel as we were short of both space and resources. There are some PG accommodations near the college that we suggest to students, but the college does not take up the responsibility,'' says the Gargi College Principal, Ms. Hema Raghavan.

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