Shocking: Newly built BU hostel given for Covid care returned in messy state

The neglected condition of the hostel at BU’s Jnanabharathi campus. Credit: Special arrangement

The neglected condition of the hostel at BU’s Jnanabharathi campus. Credit: Special arrangement

The brand new hostel building of Bangalore University (BU), handed over to the BBMP for use as a Covid Care Centre two years ago, has been returned in a messy condition.

When they took back possession of the northeastern students’ hostel at the Jnanabharathi campus, officials were shocked to find the building poorly maintained. The newly constructed hostel building was meant for girl students from the northeastern states.

The varsity gave the building to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on the civic body’s request to use it as a Covid Care Centre in June 2020.

As the pandemic situation eased and physical classes began, the varsity sent repeated requests to the BBMP to hand the hostel back to them.

The civic body eventually handed back control of the building on June 11. BU received a letter from the BBMP about returning the hostel.

“They have not even cleaned the rooms while giving back the hostel. Several things were damaged,” a senior BU official said. The rooms were cluttered with medicines, beds, cots, waste material, and all remnants of a Covid ward, said officials.

“We gave them a new building inaugurated by the Prime Minister,” an official reminded, shocked by the condition in which the civic body returned the facility.

“We have to need repaint and repair the facility in order to accommodate our students,” the official added.

The civic body retained control of a few rooms and has told the varsity to give back the building’s control whenever required.

Sprawled across 5.5 acres, the hostel can accommodate 2,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students. The hostel was built in collaboration with the North Eastern Council, which bore a large share of the building expense.

While 75% of the admission is reserved for northeast students, 25% has been provided for other students.

The 2014 attack on Arunachal Pradesh students in New Delhi gave rise to the idea of a separate hostel for students from the northeastern states. Since Bengaluru has a sizable student population from the northeast, the North Eastern Council approached the BU for land to construct the hostel inside the Jnanabharathi campus.

BBMP officials were unavailable for comment.