BENGALURU: Some inmates of the Government Science College boys hostel escaped with minor injuries after a cooker burst on Sunday. The hostel located near Trinity Circle, comes under Social Welfare Department, Bengaluru North Taluk.
There are 360 students in the hostel, but it lacks basic facilities. Monkeys, which frequently enter the hostel rooms in search of food, have become a big headache for the students. The simians tear up books and spill food kept on the tables in the hostel rooms. The hostel inmates are fed up of the monkey menace and lack of proper facilities.
A bar and restaurant is located near hostel and it is feared that students may get into the drinking habit, while some others are facing disturbance from bar-goers.
Students claimed, “The authorities are not providing quality food to students at the hostel. We used to find worms in the rice and the kitchen is a mess. A boy got injured in the eye after a cooker burst on Sunday. There is no proper water connection. It was damaged five years back, but has not been fixed till now. Drinking water is going waste without proper pipelines and there is no one to question about the wastage of food”.
A student, Ajay Krishna, claimed, “The taluk officer has not visited the hostel at least once though we had complained about the situation in the hostel. We have been complaining since the 5 years regarding the crumbling infrastructure. They are not even providing us soap kits. Tobacco and alcohol are being consumed inside the hostel and the government is just ignoring the interests of SC and ST students”.
Ajay also said the students do not have bed facilities. “The hostel roof is damaged and water leaks during monsoon. If we complain to one official, he will point to another official. Our problems are not being resolved. The government is releasing funds to Social Welfare Department, but we are not getting any benefits. We will have to protest on the streets if our condition is ignored any further. Are we here to study or fight against the government?” he questioned.
Another student, Raju said, “We have been complaining about the unhealthy environment and unhygenic food here. There is a bar and restaurant near the hostel. The atmosphere around the hostel makes it difficult for us to stay. It can mislead the youth. Toilets are worse than public toilets as they are not maintained”.