New Delhi: Classrooms and other facilities in several Delhi University colleges were turned into temporary shelters Monday as institutions suspended classes and opened their campuses to students displaced after the PG building collapse in South Delhi’s Satya Niketan.Colleges put up mattresses in health centres, staff and guest rooms to accommodate students and arranged for food and counselling for those in distress. Several PGs in the area also shut their doors and asked residents to vacate, while some were reportedly sealed amid concerns over the condition of the buildings.DU has directed colleges to check their admission rolls, identify students living in the affected area and reach out to them to shift to the campus for their safety. Venkateswara College, Motilal Nehru College, Jesus and Mary College, Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, Maitreyi College, Ram Lal Anand College, Bhagat Singh College and Aryabhatta College, among others, have issued these notices offering shelter and food support to the students.A WhatsApp group of college principals and South Campus director Rajni Abbi has also been set up to share updates and coordinate assistance. The university has offered the AICTE guest house to parents who need accommodation while visiting Delhi, officials said.Female students have been allowed to take shelter in any college, while male students are being accommodated at their respective colleges after ID verification. Colleges have issued helpline numbers for students seeking food and shelter. NCC teams from several colleges also appealed for donations of water, food and bedsheets and distributed supplies at the site.At the collapse site, student volunteers from nearby colleges searched for classmates believed to have been living in the collapsed building. “Our college WhatsApp group shared six profiles of senior students from our college. We have come looking for them,” said Harshika, a first-year Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College student.Students living in adjoining buildings were also forced to leave. Ananya, an Odisha student staying in the building next to the one that collapsed, said her building had tilted and was subsequently vacated. “There was a sudden huge noise. I opened the window and saw a huge cloud of dust. I immediately realised the building had collapsed, so I ran for my life and came out,” she said. Her parents have since asked her to return home.At Venkateswara, a student who narrowly escaped the collapse broke down and was taken to a counsellor. The college principal Vajala Ravi said he slept with displaced students brought to the campus. “These are old buildings that have become dangerous…. We are doing all we can to help the students,” he said.Motilal Nehru College principal (morning) Yogeshwar Sharma said the college staff were present at the hospital trying to trace students whose phones were unreachable and were contacting their parents. Three students reported to be dead are believed to be from the college, he said.According to officials, 72 students — 46 boys and 26 girls — stayed at Venkateswara overnight, while around 50 stayed at Motilal Nehru College. Ram Lal Anand College arranged for 50 students, though they later left after having food. Many others moved to friends’ or relatives’ homes by Monday morning.Meanwhile, protests continued. ABVP held a late-night protest Sunday and stormed the MCD office, demanding the commissioner’s resignation. Association of Students for Alternative Politics (ASAP) began a sit-in at Satya Niketan, demanding that DU pay rent for students forced to live outside campus due to the hostel shortage, while NSUI, ABVP, SFI and AISA protested near the site, demanding action. A shok sabha was also organised at the Campus Law Centre.
