Onlykashmir.in News Desk
More than 300 female postgraduate students at the University of Kashmir have been left without hostel accommodation under the existing 50-kilometre eligibility rule. Students and parents have sought the Chancellor’s intervention and demanded an urgent review of the policy.
Under the criterion, students whose permanent residences fall within 50 kilometres of the University are ordinarily ineligible for hostel accommodation. The affected students say this forces them into tiring daily journeys even when their academic commitments extend into the evening.
They argue that distance alone cannot decide the need for a hostel, particularly for female students who must attend practical classes, laboratory sessions, research work and other activities beyond regular hours.
Shaiza Aslam, a postgraduate student from Khansahib in Budgam, said she lives around 47 kilometres from the Main Campus and could not even apply because of the restriction. “It is injustice with us. We reach our residences very late in the evening after attending classes and completing academic activities at the University,” she said, appealing to the Chancellor to intervene.
The cost of private accommodation has compounded the problem. A parent from Airzal, Beerwah, said his daughter reaches home at around 7 pm. He had explored renting a room at Nigeen Lane, Hazratbal, but the landlord asked for Rs 10,000 per month. “Being a farmer, how can I afford such a huge amount?” he asked, suggesting that the eligibility distance for female students be cut from 50 to 40 kilometres.
A postgraduate student from the Department of Chemistry said Science students deserve special consideration because their programmes involve extensive practical and laboratory work that keeps them on campus for long hours. She said students should not have to choose between fulfilling academic requirements and managing difficult daily commutes.
Students and parents have asked the University to review the hostel policy and introduce suitable relaxation for female postgraduate students, especially in Science departments and programmes with extended practical schedules.
Parents also called for a substantial expansion of hostel infrastructure. One suggested that the University approach the J&K Government for financial help to build a mega Girls’ Hostel of around 1,000 rooms, on the lines of the hostel infrastructure developed by the National Institute of Technology. Such a facility, they said, would offer a long-term solution to the accommodation shortage and reduce the financial and logistical difficulties of students from different parts of Kashmir.
The students and parents appealed to the Chancellor and the University administration to take cognisance of their concerns, reconsider the 50-kilometre restriction and ensure that deserving female students are not deprived of residential facilities because of an inflexible distance-based criterion. The University had not responded to the demands in the information available.
