Women students residing at the hostel of Nair Dental Hospital and College’s new building have alleged severe overcrowding and unhygienic living conditions, claiming that repeated verbal complaints to authorities since November 2024 have yielded no concrete action.
According to the students, as many as 10 residents are forced to share a single small room with inadequate ventilation. “We were admitted to the course in October 2024 and began residing in the hostel from mid-November. We were told that it was a matter of a few weeks and that we would be given proper rooms. But, it has been over a year now,” said a student. They added that the situation has only deteriorated.
Cramped living spaces where students reside inside the facility. PICS/RITIKA GONDHALEKAR
Abhinav Wagh, a health activist, alleged that a reading hall had been converted into a room for undergraduate students. “An adjacent area used to provide ventilation, but now it’s always closed. The room’s only window has been shut as it is right opposite the men’s hostel,” he said.
No female warden
Apart from overcrowding, students have raised concerns over poorly maintained washrooms, citing unclean toilets and irregular sanitation. Women students have also pointed out the absence of a dedicated woman warden in the girls’ hostel, which they say raises serious safety and administrative concerns.
On deaf ears
Students claim they have repeatedly approached hostel authorities and college administration with verbal complaints. However, they allege that the only explanation offered has been “the increased intake of students in the last academic year”. “The administration says admissions have increased, but that should have been planned. We are paying fees and deserve basic living conditions,” said Wagh.
Students’ Woes
>> All students speaking to mid-day requested anonymity, fearing harassment from professors and authorities. Some alleged they had been threatened verbally.
>> ‘In a medical college hostel, especially where many of us are staying away from home for the first time, having a female warden is the bare minimum requirement. Not all problems can be shared with a male warden’
>> ‘There are two ACs, but we aren’t allowed to use even one. Due to this we have to rely on four fans, whose fastest speed is not enough to cool the room. Sometimes it’s so hot that we are unable to sleep’
>> ‘One of the two wardens, after complaints were made about the unhygienic state of the men’s hostel, warned us that they would fail us if we do such ‘stunts’. What are we supposed to do then? When my parents tried to meet the authorities to share our concerns, they were disrespectfully made to sit for nearly two hours’
Authorities respond
Dr Mala Dixit, dean, Nair Dental Hospital and College
‘I have just taken charge of the college. Since day one, I have been after the authorities to give me an update on the Haji Ali building, where students were supposed to be accommodated long ago. It will have at least 11 to 12 floors. Some students are being accommodated at a [civic-owned building] on Curry Road. I had also asked for a tentative alternative accommodation near the college, but haven’t received any response’
