CHENNAI: Every year, hundreds of students from disadvantaged backgrounds come to the city to pursue higher education with the hope of moving up the social ladder. However, students who seek accommodation in hostels run by the Adi Dravidar Welfare department have to fight to even get good food and basic amenities.
Students say that worms are found frequently in the food served while the water seeps in through the roof when it rains. When TNIE spoke to students from hostels run by the Adi Dravidar Welfare department in Nandanam, West CIT Nagar and Mylapore, they said that worms in food are a regular affair.
“We staged a protest demanding to ensure the quality of food and water in the hostel in November. The drinking water was not potable due to the heavy smell of bleach. The hostel premises are unclean and many students get skin infections due to filthy water. During the rains and cyclone Mandous, all the rooms were flooded and we brought benches from the mess hall to sleep. Following persistent complaints, officials have started some work to repair the roof. We will only know if it is effective during the next rain,” said a student at the Nandanam hostel, on condition of anonymity.
The condition of the hostel at Mylapore is no different. When TNIE visited the spot, there was a huge pool of sewage water stagnant right outside the facility. “The colour of the bathing water is grey in the hostel. Even during an inspection by officials recently, we told them all our complaints. The students in each room pooled in money to get drinking water daily as the water supplied to the hostel is not potable,” said a student at the Mylapore hostel.
While the bathing and toilet facilities at West CIT Nagar and Kodambakkam hostels are slightly better, the students said that the quality of food is bad. “Whenever I get some money from my parents, I eat at the roadside shops. Once you see worms wriggling in the food, it becomes difficult to eat the food provided after that. The taste of the food is also mostly terrible,” said a student from West CIT Nagar.
The students also replied in the negative when asked if they have been provided with cots, blankets, mats, pillows and other facilities as mentioned in the policy note of the department. They also added that the disbursal of Rs 150 for miscellaneous charges is also erratic. “We have not received the amount yet. We also raised this issue as well when officials came for inspection,” said another student staying at Mylapore hostel.
“The rice is supplied by the civil supplies corporation and we buy vegetables in bulk. There might be some problems when food is cooked for such a huge number of students,” said an official.
Another official said that the miscellaneous charges provided to the students are provided once in six months or a year or along with the scholarship provided for them, as crediting Rs 150 every month will be taken by the bank if the account does not have a minimum balance. 85% of the seats in the hostels maintained by the Adi Dravidar Welfare department is reserved for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, 10% for the backward classes and most backward classes and 5% for others.