No canteen, rooms filled with junk: MU hostel girls complain of poor facilities

Mumbai: Students at the Madam Cama Girls Hostel in Churchgate, under the University of Mumbai, have raised serious concerns about the poor condition of their living facilities. For the past 15 days, the hostel canteen has been non-functional, forcing around 126 residents to rely on food deliveries for all their meals. Apart from this, part of the ceiling has collapsed in one of the rooms, while a few other rooms are filled with junk and hence unusable.

Following a formal complaint by the students to the administration, senate members of the university conducted a surprise inspection on Friday. The visiting team included student representatives Sheetal Sheth, Pradeep Sawant, Shashikant Zore, and former senate member Rajan Kolambekar.

Sawant said, “There has been no canteen facility for the last 15 days. Students have no choice but to order every meal from outside every day.” One of the students said that despite repeated attempts to contact the administration, no action had been taken to resolve the issue.

Sheth also highlighted other critical problems. “The drinking water system is inadequate. Just three of the seven floors have water coolers. Additionally, each floor has just two geysers for bathing, which is not nearly enough,” she said.

Lighting is another concern. Many floors have poor or non-functional lighting, and the hostel lacks a full-time warden. “For a hostel with a capacity of 196 students, there’s no permanent warden. The current wardens only visit for two hours a day,” Sheth added.

This situation is especially concerning in light of the guidelines issued by the state government in June 2023, following a rape and murder at the Savitribai Phule Women’s Hostel in Charni Road. Those guidelines mandate the presence of a full-time warden and proper training for all hostel staff.

Zore noted that some rooms are unnecessarily locked or filled with junk. “Part of the first-floor roof has collapsed, and a few rooms are being used to store garbage and unusable items.”

Sawant also pointed out issues with room allocation. “According to a Management Council decision made between 2018 and 2022, any leftover rooms after university department allocations should go to students from affiliated colleges. But last year, out of 196 seats, only 170 were filled. Despite student demand, the remaining seats were left vacant.”

Senate members have sent a letter to vice-chancellor Ravindra Kulkarni, urging him to take immediate action. The letter reads, “This mismanagement is causing serious inconvenience to students. We strongly request the university administration to take personal responsibility and improve hostel conditions.”

Responding to allegations about the poor conditions at the hostel, MU issued a statement denying the claims and also criticised the surprise visit made by Senate members, including three men.

An MU official stated, “The Senate members entered the girls’ hostel without prior permission from the administration and in the absence of the warden, which is against university rules. Such visits are not allowed.” The university also said that several MU authority members have condemned the visit and are calling for strict action against those involved. The statement stated that the university has taken serious note of the incident.

In response to the complaints raised about the hostel, the university clarified that the canteen was shut for 10 days due to unavoidable reasons but is now fully operational. It also stated that there are enough water coolers installed, and no complaints have been received about geysers. “All lights are functioning properly, and no part of the roof has collapsed. The information being circulated is misleading and is based on a rushed inspection,” the statement said. MU further added that the hostel has a full-time superintendent, security personnel, and other staff who are readily available to students, including through a dedicated WhatsApp group.