BENGALURU: Foreign students on scholarships are up in arms against a rule change effected last year, making it compulsory for them to stay in their college hostels for the entire duration of the course.
The change, students say, has put them in trouble as many of them moved out of their hostels after completing their first academic year. Now, with their hostel stipend stopped, they are in dire financial trouble. They had also protested last year over the same issue with no results.
On Wednesday, about 70 students from five private colleges in the city protested outside the offices of the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) in a repeat of last year’s incident. They were demanding that ICCR release the hostel stipend payable to them so that they can pay rent for the houses that they were staying in. “When we took admission into Indian colleges, we were not told that we would have to stay in the hostel through the course. How can they change the rules midway and expect us to be okay with it? Several of us have already taken houses on 11 month contracts and now have no money left to pay rent,” said an Afghan student studying in a private college on Magadi Road.
The students complain that many hostels run by colleges do not have proper facilities and studying becomes almost impossible because of the sheer number of students from different streams who live in the same block. “When our exams are going on, other department students are partying. You cannot say no to them as they have finished their exams. But we are unable to study, my grades had dropped and picked up only after I left the hostel,” said another student who did not want to be named.
Last year, a similar situation resulted in protest by students which was resolved with the promise of detailed discussions between students and the ICCR. However, this year around, a compromise which will result in the students being allowed to live out of campus is unlikely, sources said.
“The policy was put in place to ensure the safety of foreign students. We are willing to go with them to the college authorities and ensure that they have good living conditions, but the rules cannot be changed. Some students have chosen to vacate despite being told that they would lose their stipend,” a senior ICCR official said.
Next year, the tovernment is contemplating allowing admissions only to colleges which have sufficiently equipped hostels to house their foreign student population for the duration of the course. “The only concession we can make is to write to the government to release the amounts for July-December as a one-time regularisation if they agree to go back to the hostels immediately,” the official added.The city has a large student population with admissions from countries like Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania, Afghanistan, Iran, Sri Lanka, Mauritius and Bangladesh being considered for scholarships.