Dean seeks students’ data before reopening of hostels

Deepankar Sharda

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 23

Panjab University (PU) has started the coursework for the reopening of the campus and hostels after semester examinations scheduled to be held in March, said sources.

The office of the Dean Students Welfare (DSW) has started collecting the data of the number of students, who would be seeking hostel accommodation. The authorities had earlier decided to reopen the PU hostels only after fulfilling all measures for the safety of the students.

The data has been sought by January 28 before taking any further step. The 20 hostels at the PU have a capacity to accommodate nearly 6,000 students. However, considering the ongoing situation, the authorities would open the hostels in a phased manner. The issue related to the reopening of hostels is important before reopening the campus, said the source.

“The data is likely to be collected till January 28 and thereafter, the authorities will work on reopening the campus and hostels in a phased manner. We have many students from different parts of the nation. We have to ensure their safety. We have to take a call while keeping in mind the resources we have,” said the source privy to matter.

The decision to call international students to the PU is also likely to be postponed.

“Just like the ongoing structure of schools, students are likely to be called to the campus on alternate days. The practice is likely to be adopted throughout the session. In case of any medical emergency, the classes will be moved online. Not everyone is going to get the vaccination in the coming months. So, the decision may be changed as per the situation,” said the source.

Meanwhile, demands have been also raised that the hostels, which were turned into Covid-19 isolation centres, should be sanitised over a period of time by the UT Administration before reopening them for students. The process of allotting hostels to the students will be also discussed later.

On Thursday, the Panjab University Research Scholar Association (PURSA) had demanded the reopening of hostels and library for research scholars.