Days after students came out on streets to demand hostel facility, Central University of Kashmir (CUK) has decided to allot two blocks in Science and Arts campus in Duderhama for accommodation of students. The varsity has announced list of 66 students who can avail the hostel facility in the said campus.
The COVID Negative test report has been made mandatory for students. For the convenience of the students, the test will be undertaken in the Health Center of Green Campus Ganderbal on 5th and 8th of March till 12 noon. However the students can get their tests done somewhere else also but it shouldn’t be older than 48 hours.
Ayeena, a Master’s student says she has to travel from Handwara to Ganderbal on a daily basis to attend her classes in the Central University and cannot live on rent because she is alone here. “I reach back home at 7:30 in the evening and cannot afford to travel such a long distance every day. Now the University has allotted the facility for girls but we are asked to get our COVID tests done before availing the hostel facility,” she added.
A male student who wished not to be named said, “We haven’t been accommodated by the University as yet. We are struggling a lot. I have to come from Islamabad. It is hectic and consumes most of my time. I hardly get any time to study on the days when I travel to University from home. It’s very troublesome to travel 70 kms in the morning to attend classes.”
Students claim that the original hostel has been allotted to some government officials and political workers and is yet to be handed over to students for accommodation. .
VC Central University of Kashmir, Mehraj Uddin Mir said, “We have a problem with the quality of land. Despite our best endeavors, we couldn’t raise a separate hostel structure till date. Just one week ago, the Government issued 94 Kanals of land in Watlar wherein vertical buildings can be raised. We will have to start afresh and devise our master plan as soon as funds come. But for now we are making arrangements for accommodation to a great extent. Some structures from Science and Arts Campus would be used for girl students while boys will have to wait since we are converting a Hotel into a Boys Hostel in Ganderbal itself.”
“During COVID emergency, the building was taken over by the District Administration because there were no students to avail the facility since University was not functional in peak COVID times. Now we have made a request to them to give it back to the university. It may take a week or so to make it functional,” the VC said.