Every year, hundreds of students from disadvantaged backgrounds come to the city to pursue higher education with the hope of chasing their dreams and moving up the social ladder. However, what awaits them is the poor condition of hostels run by the Adi Dravidar Welfare department in Tamil Nadu and their fight to get good food and basic amenities. Most of these students have been disgusted as they find worms in their food frequently and taking it up with the staff in the hostel provides them with only a short-term solution, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
When The New Indian Express 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 have become a usual occurrence and even showed photos of the food taken on various instances. "We staged a protest demanding to ensure the quality of the food and water in the hostel in November. The drinking water was undrinkable due to the smell of the bleach, the hostel premises are unclean and many students get skin problems due to the filthy water. During the rains due to 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 rains," said a student in the Nandanam hostel on condition of anonymity.
What about water?
The condition in Mylapore is no different and when The New Indian Express visited the spot, there was a huge pool of sewage water stagnant outside the facility. "The colour of the bathing water is grey in this hostel. Even during an inspection by officials recently, we told them all our complaints. The students in each room pool in money to get drinking water daily as the water provided in the hostel is unusable," said a student in Mylapore hostel.
While the bathing and toilet facilities in 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 in roadside shops. Once you see worms moving 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 negatively 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.
"Trying to provide quality food..."
Meanwhile, officials from the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department said that the amount allocated for providing food is Rs 1,100 for each student per month which comes down to around Rs 35 per day. This is for providing food four times a day including sundal and sukku coffee for evening snacks. "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. However, we are trying to provide quality food with the money provided," 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 money provided for them as crediting Rs 150 every month will be taken by the bank if the account doesn't have a minimum balance. A total of 85% of the seat 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, as stated in a report by The New Indian Express.
