HOSTEL OR HOSTILE??

With teary eyes and heavy hearts most of us leave our homes. This isn’t true all the time though. Sometimes there are happy faces, faces which do not mind the outside world and consider it freedom as compared to their own homes. This is the scenario of not a bride leaving her own home and going to her groom’s place, this is about students leaving home to move into hostels.

Many students do not really have a lot of expectations when they move into hostels. A simple room (maybe a little big), well-lit place, a little open space in front of the hostel, mess with good edible food-maybe this is all they ask for. However, more often than not even in the best of the universities these basic needs are not looked into.

Many world class universities claim to have the best hostel facilities in vain. Students complain time and again about the various problems they have been facing in their hostels be it the ‘bugs’ or the bad ventilation, leaking roofs, bad bathrooms or unhygienic corridors. It all comes down to the same thing-students keep complaining and there is nobody to listen to them.

On a belief which is contrary to students, there is a disciplinary committee and a hostel committee which if not anything else atleast ‘claims’ to look into the problems of the students. This committee however exists in places where reaching it becomes another pain. Talking about the Manipal University, it has two different sections for hostel administration. One at KMC for the KMC and its branch students and the other for MIT and its students. However MIT also includes hostel sections for a lot of other colleges like MIC, MUTD, MIM, MIJM etc. This is where problem begins.

Though the administrative work has been divided in a very sensible and organised manner, students do not find it much to their benefit. These are students who do not study in MIT and come from other colleges. They do not stay anywhere close to MIT and hence every time they need to move to the hostel administration regarding any problems they have to travel a lot.

Students walk up and down the roads leading from Kamath Circle to MIT. This becomes a more common sight at the time of new sessions or during a new year. Students do the rounds of MIT to clear off pending dues, late fees and other tutorial expenses. This happens when there is some important work or any kind of permission which is to be taken from the Chief Warden. Be it the internet connections, hostel complaints, hostel fees, general notices and information regarding hostels. This story is about those who have to trail their way up to get the work done.

Here we are talking about THE problems students who are usually non-MITians face. The hostel department that is in MIT runs for all non KMC colleges. It looks into all the hostel dues, fee particulars, hostel complaints etc. Unfortunately it is placed only in one central building. It is true that everything at one place would help solve problems better but given the weather conditions and the restrictions on the entry of autos or other vehicles to certain limits, students find it difficult to crack their problems.

Also due to the confinement of all the sections in one central office the traffic of students increases which leads to overcrowding and also many students have to bunk their classes to complete the procedures well before time. They have to run down to the MIT campus in rain or sun every time. Students who don’t live in MIT face this situation very often. On the other hand it gets a little easier for the MIT students. Studying in the same area more often than not, they finish their work by a greater ease than the rest.

‘We have to travel up and down to MIT for everything each time. It gets more annoying when the authorities turn us down and ask us to come back again on another day’ Ekta Gupta, 2^nd year student of BBM was quoted as saying.

Most students who face this problem come up only with one solution. They wish to have independent departments of hostel sections in their own colleges. According to them this would solve their problems to a great extent. It would not only save time but would also come as a relief from the every time-running-to-MIT. They claim that because the university is interlinked to all its colleges it would not be very difficult for them to keep records. Also, the university maintains computed records of all the particulars hence it would not be difficult to keep track of the fee particulars of both hostel and tuition, of all students.

With a small idea which looks practical enough the students continue to keep their hope alive.

Another problem that the students have been facing very often is the hostel fees and over dues. It is set procedures that at the beginning of the semester students have to clear off any pending hostel or mess dues. However, the most painful thing that students feel in this procedure is that they are never given a break up of their expenditure or simply the details of the amount they pay. They are just given an amount which is to be paid. The situation worsens and sometimes gets heated up when the bills come close to five grand or more. In such situations surprised students do expect a breakup of the amount they have to pay.

“I already pay huge fees to live in the hostel and now I have to pay so much more. Worse still, they don’t even tell me what I am actually paying!” Rimjhim Jha, a 2^nd year BAJC student was quoted as saying. She’s not the only one. Many students crib about the bad facilities given to them inspite of the huge hostel fees which they pay each year.

Whenever these students have tried finding out what they are actually paying, accountants at the counter ask them to meet the Chief Warden. Dejected students hardly get to know anything as the Chief Warden himself or his office does not contain a breakup of the accounts. Even if they do, hardly do they inform the students about it. Also the situation is so bad that no matter even if the parents call to get answers the office turns them down with invalid reasons.

The mood swings of the hostel administration section have their own way. Irrespective of how the students behave with them, they always appear to be mad at something or someone. Little does this help the chaotic situation as this increases tension. More so the authorities end up being more hostile towards the students each year. Given that every new batch of students sees some amount of higher-growing aggressive students, the authorities can’t help but lose their temper easily.

Impossible to bring into friendly accord is what the dictionary defines hostility as. If this is true then only God knows what it would take to solve the problems of the students, the management and to get both these parties on good terms with one another! Until then enjoy hostel life….

THREE DAYS OF LAW, ORDER AND ‘BOOZE-LESS’ LIFE!

It is not a very often sight when everything closes in and around an almost B-Level University. Life at a full stop is a very rare scene in Manipal and Manipal University (MU). People who have studied in MU and passed out of it would not very much believe the words of the present students if they told them that MU closed down for full three days!

Yes, miracles happen and in their own rare way! Manipal closed down on the 30^th September till the 2^nd October. Following the orders from the government, all liquor shops, pubs, clubs and restaurants were to be closed on these three days. Life came to a halting stop not only to people who consume alcohol but also to people who wanted to eat out.

This happened post Ayodhya Verdict where people were asked to stay indoors as section 144 was enforced. “When we can no longer blame things on liquor, or war's reaction, we may begin to suspect that human nature itself is a little faulty.” This was said by an unknown author and stands to be true. The human nature has seen a lot of changes post the verdict. The verdict ‘vacation’ was followed by Gandhi Jayanthi-the official ‘dry day.’ All these put together got a minimal amount of restriction on the liquor stores and the pubs and discs of Manipal.

When asked about the verdict and its consequences many liquor and pub store owners refused to open up or comment. Some of them however gave vague comments about it. “I don’t think people really care about the verdict. I did run a loss though and it would take me atleast two weeks to recover it, maybe more” Sharad, Manager of Sky Lounge told The Manipal Journal (TMJ). He also adds that people came thronging back on Sunday. Some wanted to dance away while some wanted their own favourite liquor back.

The losses incurred list is long. Even the Co-owner at DeeTee, Amit Kumar Shetty said “I have to pay government taxes and even pay salaries to my employees. These holidays don’t count as casual leave either.”

Students have their own perspective in this matter. “I don’t think liquor shops should be closed in the name of religion or God” an MIT student, who wished to be anonymous, was quoted as saying.

There is an annual tax that is to be paid by all pub o disc owners. Holidays are included in it but not wholly described due to which the three day holiday fell as a loss to many owners. The complete tax of all three days had to be given from the pockets of the owners. One of the pub owners who wished to remain anonymous told TMJ that they have to pay approximately Rs. 1400 a day and Rs.5 lakh annually which is to be paid for the number of days that they run. Also if the pub owners provide its customers with bus facility a part of the tax is exempted on that too. The verdict came in as a very dear affair, so much so that some of them had to cancel their orders too. Most others just postponed it. However there was atleast two days loss which they had to bear.

“I think if I would have filed an application, even I would get a piece of land. The decision was more like any Pachayati decision not that I would say it was good or bad” Krishna Prasad Hegde was quoted as saying.

Not only were the liquor shops, restaurants and pubs affected even the general life was. People preferred staying indoors. Better still many students left to their natives or hometowns to spend time with family and friends. It came in as a refreshing break to them.

The Blue Waters Manager, Jaganath, however said that his business did not run into any loss. He dint notice much change in the attitude of people either. Instead he told TMJ that people were in fact happy about things running in action again.

“I thought things would fall apart further. Given that the Common wealth Games were to begin from the 3^rd October, I predicted chaos. But things went smooth. And for students, we thought we would study, while we just willed time away” quips Akashay Pariti, a third year Bio-tech student from MIT.

India is a free country and people need to accept the decision of the verdict. People who don’t accept this they have moved to the Supreme Court, others continue to quip, while Manipal is back in action!