KOLKATA: Several colleges and universities will reopen their hostels this week so that outstation students can move in and attend in-person classes on the campus.
On February 3, when campuses reopened after the third wave break, most colleges registered very thin attendance — even under 10% in many institutions. According to college principals, unavailability of proper accommodation is one of the main reasons most outstation students have shown reluctance in returning to campus even during the two attempts after the first and second waves. This is the reason authorities have decided to reopen the hostels within days of reopening the campuses.
All the hostels of Jadavpur University will reopen from Monday. Classes of several batches will resume from February 7 in a staggered manner. “A detailed schedule has been shared with all the students and teachers regarding the resumption of in-person classes. All the hostels will be open from Monday onwards,” said an official of the university.
Deep sanitisation has been carried out in the hostels and boarders will have to follow proper Covid-safety norms inside the buildings. “Some rearrangements have been made in the hostels so that social distancing can be practised. Boarders must ensure they do not crowd any part of the hostel,” the official said.
Hostels of Scottish Church College will reopen on Monday while physical classes have started from Thursday. “Many of our students come from different parts of the state. A sizeable number of them are also from northeastern states. So it is important that hostel facilities are available. Proper Covid-safety protocol will be followed in the hostels as well as on the campus,” said an official of the college.
At Presidency University, the authorities will soon decide on reopening of the hostels. For boys, there is the Eden Hindu Hostel adjacent to the university and the girls have a hostel in Salt Lake.
Several students come from across the country to St Xavier’s College, which will be reopening on February 21. The college tries to provide hostel facilities depending on the capacity.
The principal of a south Kolkata college said attendance for offline classes will go up in the coming weeks as hostels gradually reopen and outstation students move in. “Many students have told us they are unable to come for physical classes because they do not have a place to stay in the city. Several PG accommodations have shut doors during the pandemic or have increased the charges, making it difficult for students to come back here,” the principal said.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/college-university-hostels-set-to-reopen-this-week/articleshow/89392520.cms
