When I reached the Jamia Millia Islamia school, the first thing that struck me was not the protest over the alleged chameleon in hostel food, but the condition of the school itself. Be it dilapidated building, unhygienic drinking-water area and complaints of stale food, students are complaining that the unhygienic conditions go far beyond hostel and hostel food.
Students on Monday (September 14) alleged that unhygienic food was being served in the hostel mess. On September 14, Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) constituted a four-member committee to probe the allegations. But as I walked through the school, several students pointed towards problems that, according to them, had been raised with the administration repeatedly.
“This is not the first time we have complained,” a hosteller of class 12 told Times Now Digital on the condition of anonymity. “We raised complaints last week too after we got annoyed of finding flies, ants etc in our food. We told our Dean several times earlier who claimed they informed the Provost, but when the Provost visited us last weel, he said he had not heard about these complaints before. He reprimanded the Dean for not informing him. But, nothing changed and we still faced similar problems. So when a lizard was found in the food yesterday, it was the last straw.”
The hostel fee, students told me, is around Rs 50,000 a year.
What was particularly concerning was the location where food was being prepared. Students pointed out that the area was next to a washroom. The water area near the canteen has accumulated dust and moss. This is the place where students are washing their hands and drinking water.
The basketball court located near the ‘Arshi Canteen’ has stinking trash dumped near it. Students and teachers claimed that despite raising the issue nearly a year ago, no action had followed. Some students alleged that those who raise complaints are being “witch-hunted”. They claimed that the warden has warned students that they may not be given hostel accommodation next year if they continue making such allegations.
Times Now Digital could not independently verify these allegations.
A teacher, on condition of anonymity, also told me that the boys’ toilets stink so badly that they struggle to stand there for long.
This teacher has himself studied at the school, went on to graduate from Jamia and has been teaching there since 1999. According to him, the school buildings are in poor condition and some date back to 1938. He also raised concerns over the absence of emergency exits and adequate fire-safety equipment.
The teacher also alleged that when he was studying at Jamia, there were around 12 hostels and each hostel had a warden. Today, he claims, there are only around four or five wardens, with each reportedly responsible for 100 to 150 students.
Issues also in classrooms, faculty
The concerns were not limited to food and sanitation.
Students also complained about the classrooms. The blackboards, they said, are so old and faded that even students sitting on the first bench sometimes struggle to see what is being written. “We sent signed letters from all students to the Provost about the issue, but we have never received any response,” said another class 12 student from Science stream, who has been studying in JMI school since class 6. He decided to stay anonymous due to “fear of getting blacklisted.”
Then there is the heat.
Students claim attendance of many students has been falling because a lot of them do not want to sit through classes in poorly ventilated classrooms during the heat. “Science stream has five sections and each section has nearly 50 kids. The classrooms can only accomodate 30-35 students. So, we end up sharing desks and everyone is sweating due to the extreme heat,” said another class 12 student who travels from Noida sector 52 to JMI every day.
Several students also spoke about what they see as a decline in the quality of education after Class 10. “I have been studying here since class 6 and I honestly enjoyed studying. But the quality of classes has deteriorated since I came to class 12. Teachers are now rushing to finish the syllabus,” class 12 student said,
Echoing the same emotion, his friend added “Math teacher solves one question from each concept in class, and the rest is skipped. Every student needs to enroll themselves in a private coaching centre to be able to score good in class 12 board exams.”
Meanwhile, parents of day scholars, Bushra Jamal and Farha, told me that they found the hygiene within the school to be satisfactory, although they said they could not comment on conditions inside the hostels.
That is perhaps the most striking part of what I saw and heard at Jamia’s school. While day scholars are happy with the food being served at canteens, students living in hostels says the only way to survive is not to eat hostel mess’ food.
While the university has said the allegations surrounding the chameleon in the food are false and has constituted a committee to investigate them, the concerns raised by students about stale food, insects, sanitation, ageing infrastructure, fire safety, overcrowded classrooms and hostel administration still need proper attention.