Expensive accommodation: For students, nowhere to stay

Only students from federal areas are eligible to apply for govt hostels.

ISLAMABAD:

The big bad city is not the only thing that students coming to Islamabad have to worry about. The city that has greenery and roads aplenty seems to be extremely short on housing for students. 

Safe and affordable accommodation, most of the times a decisive factor for students choosing to come to the city, often discourages girls and their parents from pursuing studies here.

Except for limited vacancies in colleges in F-7/2, F-6/4 and Islamabad College for Girls, there is no hostel facility for girls in other colleges in Islamabad. Students from far-flung areas, whose numbers are on the rise, face tremendous problems due to the low number of government hostels in the federal capital.

Only students from federal areas can apply for accommodation in government hostels. Even then, not all applicants can be accommodated.

As a consequence, both boys and girls are forced to live in private hostels which provide substandard services in an insecure environment despite hefty charges. This not only puts an extra financial burden on the students, but also makes it difficult for them to concentrate on their studies in what is often a loud and disruptive environment.

“I just got admission in H-8 Commerce College in I-Com where there is no hostel and I’m worried about my accommodation,” Afaq Khan, a student from Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B), told The Express Tribune.

“Presently, I’m living in a private hostel in G-9/4. They take Rs8,000 from me every month, but the environment isn’t conducive for studying and the services are also pathetic,” he said. He added that the government should at least arrange accommodation for student from remote areas.

As if the existing space constraints weren’t enough, the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) has handed over a hostel of Post Graduate Boys College in H-9 to Pakistan Baitul Maal to accommodate orphans of Sweet Homes.

Hassan Ali Khan, a student from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, said he lives in a private hostel in H-8, where he has a tough time concentrating on his studies as most residents are professionals.

“But I’m more concerned for my sister who is forced to live in a private hostel because she is studying at the Islamic International University.” Khan said private hostels are not suitable for women and suggested that the university administration arrange hostels for female students at least.

CADD Joint Secretary Rafiq Tahir said the hostels at Boys Post Graduate College H-9 can accommodate around 150 students. This facility is available only for students from G-B. He defended CADD’s decision to allocate a portion of the hostel to Pakistan Baitul Maal on the grounds that other institutes had been using it for the last 15 years.

He added that students of Girls Post Graduate College F-7/2 and Islamabad Model College for Girls F-6/4 are provided with accommodation in hostels.

He also defended the rule that only people from the federal areas are allowed to live in government hostels, “Only students from G-B and Federally Administered Tribal Areas are eligible for hostel accommodation because these institutions basically cater to locals or students from areas under federal control.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 27^th, 2012.