OU hostels have 4k overstayers

Some haven’t vacated the place for 10 yrs

Osmania University has 22 hostels which accommodate 8,000 students, of whom about 4,000 are staying illegally.

According to University officials, former students continue to stay on in the hostel even after they have graduated. Some are even married and go home to their families on weekends and holidays!

Most of the over-stayers are aspiring to join public service, or are unemployed, or are looking for government jobs. Some of them stay on for two or three years and some for as long as 10 years!

Non-boarders said they stay in the hostels to prepare for competitive exams as all the notifications are delayed by the government and their waiting period has increased.

Mr Anil Tarlapalli, a hosteller, said, “Due to overcrowding in hostels due to the presence of non-boarders, we have to adjust in rooms with around three or four roommates which is quite difficult. We are also suffering from water scarcity due to overcrowding in the hostels.”

Osmania University registrar Gopal Reddy said many students who have passed out of the university are staying back in the hostels in the name of competitive exams.

“The main reason is that they get free accommodation and food, especially those who are unemployed. There are complaints that even after marriage people continue to stay back in the hostels and because of this it has become difficult for us to accommodate the boarders who are currently studying.”

He admits that the hostels are overcrowded, that boarders have to share rooms with more students and that the food served is not enough for both nonboarders and boarders.

“Though food is only cooked for boarders, non-boarders also end up eating it, and this has led to many conflicts.”

The university's security department has a record of those staying illegally even in vacant faculty quarters. The university has directed its security staff and police to first issue a warning to overstayers and then evict them.