Suhail Bhat
Srinagar, July 10: Inadequate hostel accommodation at Kashmir University forces over a thousand female students to live in rented accommodations, raising safety concerns amidst growing crimes against women in the Valley.
The University currently operates four girls’ hostels including Khairul Nisa Girls Hostel, Habba Khatoon Girls Hostel, Rabia Basri Girls Hostel, and Bibi Amina Girls Hostel. These accommodations have the capacity to house approximately 800 students, including 100 research scholars. However, with the growing number of female students seeking higher education at the University, especially those traveling from far-off places, the existing hostels are facing challenges in meeting their needs.
To compound the issue, a new girls hostel with 80 rooms capable of accommodating approximately 300 girls, has been under construction for the last two years. However, its completion has been delayed, leaving many female students without proper accommodations.
A senior professor said that the lack of adequate hostel facilities has resulted in approximately 1,200 students living outside the University. He said the problem is expected to worsen with the arrival of a new batch of postgraduate students, mostly girls, scheduled to begin on August 1st, adding another 1,000 students to the University.
These female students are forced to reside in areas surrounding Kashmir University, such as Habak, Malabagh, and Saderbal. However, their safety concerns have been amplified due to the rising cases of violence against women.
“Whenever a crime occurs in the city, I receive a call from my worried family. We have not witnessed any crimes against University students, but if they occur, the first casualty will be girls’ education,” a student pursuing a master’s in Mathematics at the university said. She urged the government to address this pressing issue by increasing on-campus accommodation facilities.
In addition to the safety concerns, the students also face daily challenges as tenants, including disputes over electricity usage and other matters. These issues take up a significant portion of their time and have a detrimental effect on their education. “A major portion of our time also gets consumed in cooking and cleaning. It affects our education,” a student pursuing master’s in Zoology said.
Acknowledging the problems faced by the students, Neelofar Khan, the Vice Chancellor of Kashmir University, assured that the University is actively addressing this long-standing issue. “Construction of one of the hostels is currently underway, and efforts will be made to upgrade the facilities in the future as well,” she said.
She expressed satisfaction with the increasing number of girls pursuing higher education and ensured that they receive the necessary facilities.
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