No hostel in Telangana registered with govt, safety norms ditched

Hyderabad: Amid a debate over the living conditions of students enrolled in hostels across Hyderabad, TOI has found that no hostel in Telangana is registered with the state govt. This, despite it being mandatory as per the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) guidelines.
These norms apply to all hostels that house children below 18 years.Confirming this, a senior official from the state school education department said: “Only schools are registered with the govt, not their hostels.”

Listing rules never took off
He added, “The govt had mulled drafting regulations for hostels two years ago, but it never took off.”
The NCPCR norms make it compulsory for the competent authority (the district education officer) to not only issue registration certificates but also enforce the guidelines. The district magistrate is given powers to revoke the registration of a hostel if it’s found violating norms.
Meanwhile, when TOI visited some of these hostels recently, it found them unfit for habitation. Damp walls, cramped beds, unventilated rooms and putrid canteens welcomed it in most places. None of the regulatory guidelines, which mandates clean rooms, hygienic food and others, were found present.
In a hostel in Madhapur, housing students from classes 6 to 10, TOI found seven beds crammed into a tiny room built for a single bed. There was no cross ventilation and the occupants had one restroom to share. In another hostel in Ayyappa society, the canteen was housed in what was supposed to be the parking lot of the building, and stagnant water as well as unhygienic food counters welcomed students.
Though students currently living in these facilities were hesitant to speak up, some former occupants shared how they struggled to survive. Challa Sriram who stayed at a hostel in Toopran said, “There were 40 students in one room.
Food occasionally edible
“The food was only occasionally edible.” Another student, Shardunya Mamidi, highlighted that even their safety was a concern.
Vishal Varma, who prepared for IIT JEE while living in a hostel, shared how at least two students ran away from the facility during his time. “There was a search party looking for them for weeks. I don’t remember if they were ever found, but I hope they are alive and well,” he said. Vishal added: “We had no hot water. Nobody cared for our mental health. Finding insects in food was a common occurrence.”
When asked the administrator of the hostel in Siddhi Vinayak Nagar about the missing fire extinguishers, he said: “We have one on the ground floor near the major electrical equipment. There are no cylinders on each floor.”
Venkat Sainath, joint secretary of the Hyderabad School Parents’ Association stressed the need for strict action against such hostels. “It is unfortunate that children are staying in such conditions. This, even after parents pay lakhs on these so-called premium colleges and hostels.”
When reached out to NCPCR, officials said that in case of violations, complaints about hostels can be registered with the body. “After that a report will be requested from the district magistrate,” said a senior official.
“In case the issue is found to be minor, we will ask the hostel to mend it, but if there’s any major problem, we will write to the law enforcing authorities to take action against the owners,” the official from New Delhi added. The child protection body also said that hostel registration is mandatory, and that non-compliance will attract punishment under the law.