Dhaka University is facing an acute residential crisis due to inadequate spaces in residential halls and hostels, according to the last annual report of the University Grants Commission.
Nearly 58 per cent of Dhaka University’s students are not allocated a room in the residential halls. As a result, the students live in a poor condition which hampers their academic activities, it stated.
Mostafizur Rahman, a 2nd year student of Sir AF Rahman Hall, told New Age, ‘I have been trying from last year to get a seat in the hall but I am yet to be successful.’
At present there are 17 residential halls, 3 dormitories and 2 hostels in DU to cater for more than 35,000 students. 17, 000 students are forced to find rooms outside the campus.
However due to scarcity of space, a lot of students stay on the halls’ floors, in the guest rooms, mosques, canteens, TV rooms and the balcony of the dormitories.
‘I have been sleeping on the floor of a residential hall for more than 2 years,’ said Muhammad Salauddin, a student of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall.
Sometimes students spend the whole night sleeping on the roofs of the halls, said a number of DU students.
The residential students of DU allege that the leaders and activists of the ruling party Awami League-backed students’ body, Bangladesh Chhatra League, have grabbed most of the rooms and allocated most of them among their followers and loyal students.
Campus sources said some Chhatra League leaders each live in a single room where normally around eight students stay.
They also said the relatives of some of the Chhatra League leaders often stay in the halls.
The responsibility of distributing seats should be performed by the house tutors of the respective halls but the reality is that Chhatra League leaders have taken the responsibility in DU.
On condition of anonymity, a house tutor of Muktizuddha Ziaur Rahman Hall told New Age that the house tutors cannot perform their duty properly for fear that the leaders of the ruling party-backed students’ body will demand their dismissal.
Though the female students are not so involved in student politics, the same problems also exist at the female halls as the number of rooms is inadequate for the number of the female students.
Nearly five thousand students get admission each year in DU with most of them coming from outside Dhaka.
As these students have no suitable place to live in Dhaka, they try their best to get a seat in the halls.
Often students who have completed their final exams try to keep their rooms by getting a job in the hall, creating additional problems.
Only two residential halls for the students of Dhaka University, the largest public university of country, have been built in the last 15 years, while a number of buildings have been built for teachers and officials.
The last Awami League government built a male dormitory and a female dormitory with 1,016 seats.
In 2003, former prime minister Khaleda Zia announced plans for a 500-seat female dormitory, but this is yet to be built.
Presently, a male and a female dormitory are being built.
DU vice-chancellor AAMS Arefin Siddique told New Age, ‘The authority is aware of the residential problem. A male and a female residential hall will be completed soon. After completion of the dormitories the residential problem will be reduced somewhat.’
