New Delhi, Sep 7 (PTI) For Delhi University students often forced to make do with PGs in cramped and congested bylanes of the city, the Satya Niketan building collapse that killed seven people has now lent urgency to a basic demand ahead of the DUSU polls — a safe place to stay.
Twleve people have been pulled out of the debris — seven of whom have died — after a decades-old boys’ paying guest accommodation near Delhi University’s South Campus collapsed on Sunday while the repair work was underway at the site.
As the rescue operation entered its second day on Monday, students who visited the site of the tragedy said it had also exposed wider concerns over the safety of the accommodations they depend on.
In Satya Niketan, tall buildings crowd the sky and narrow lanes leave little room for sunlight, pedestrians or emergency vehicles.
Students said they know the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) cannot completely address the accommodation crisis, but they can help find safe alternatives for students and shed enough light on the issue.
“If accommodation cannot be given immediately, at least give us a list of places that have been checked for safety and recommend where we can stay,” said Kashish, a B Com (Honours) student.
Students suggested that government institutions, including government colleges and universities, could help students identify hostels or other places to stay after proper safety checks.
Stressing that they were not blaming the DUSU or other student unions for the collapse, students said they want representatives to take up the larger accommodation problem faced by students who come to Delhi from outside.
“The DUSU and student unions have nothing to do with this,” Parth, a sociology student said.
But the students said the unions could still work towards helping students find safer alternatives near their colleges as moving farther away from the university is not always a practical option — due to the longer daily commutes, higher travel costs and less time for college and studies.
“We have to go so far away to find a place to stay and then commute for so long. If we go to the outer parts of the city, the problem will become even bigger,” another student said.
As students walked through the Satya Niketan area, they pointed to the conditions many of their peers stay in.
The passages become progressively narrower as one ventures deeper into the area, with the imposing buildings standing almost wall to wall. In some stretches, there is barely enough space for one person to walk through. Thick bundles of electrical and communication wires hang overhead, crossing and looping between buildings and leaving only narrow strips of sky visible above. Air-conditioning units jut out of the walls, pipes run along the sides of the buildings and makeshift shades stretch across some passages. The feeble natural light passing through these dense urban assemblages feels stingily rationed.
Students said most of the buildings in these inner lanes are used as PGs and alleged that several structures have been constructed or modified without the required papers or approvals.
A group pointed to one building which, according to them, has a gym in the basement and five floors above it, with the owners residing on one of the floors and PGs on the rest.
The physical layout of the neighbourhood, they said, also raises a major concern in an emergency.
“An ambulance cannot reach this area,” a student said, looking at the narrow passageways.
“Just imagine if there is a fire or a building falls down, where will the students go?” another student asked.
“If one building falls on the other, the other will fall on the next. It is going to be like a stack of cards just falling down,” the student said.
Walking through these lanes, students recalled what they experienced when the building collapsed.
Jashan Kumar, a biochemistry student who came to Delhi from Punjab and has been staying in the area for the past three to four years, said he was among the first students to reach the spot after the collapse.
“It was an extremely loud sound. We immediately went there and called the ambulances,” Kumar said.
He said the incident crudely highlights the difficult choices faced by students who come to Delhi from other states for their education.
“All of us are from outside Delhi. When we want to stay here, this is our only option,” Kumar said.
Another student who did not wish to be named said the collapse had made students look more closely at the buildings around them and the conditions in which they are being accommodated.
They said the growing number of students arriving from outside Delhi since the introduction of CUET has further increased the demand for affordable accommodation around university campuses.
With the DUSU elections scheduled for September 18 and counting and results expected the next day, the students want candidates to take up accommodation and safety issue as one of the polls planks. PTI SGV PRK
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