New Delhi: In a move to improve access to higher education for students who often struggle to secure affordable accommodation, Delhi University’s Miranda House is set to expand its residential infrastructure with a new 120-bed hostel for students from economically weaker sections (EWS) and persons with disabilities (PwD).Officials said the proposed hostel will come up on the rear side of the existing hostel complex within the college campus. An artist’s impression of the project is expected to be ready within the next two weeks, after which the design and planning process will move forward. The project will be developed through corporate social responsibility support. While construction is expected to take around two years, the college is currently awaiting the necessary approvals from MCD and other competent authorities before work begins.Miranda House currently has a hostel with a capacity of around 370 students. However, every year, applications for hostel accommodation significantly outnumber the seats, forcing many students to turn to rented accommodations outside the campus, often at considerably higher costs.Once completed, the new facility will increase the college’s residential capacity by nearly one-third, taking the total number of hostel seats to around 490. The expansion is expected to ease the long-standing shortage of on-campus accommodation and allow more students to live within the college premises, reducing both travel time and living expenses while providing a safer and more academically conducive environment.Principal Bijayalaxmi Nanda said, “The new hostel is aimed at improving access to higher education for students who often face financial and accessibility challenges. It would provide significant relief to girls coming to Delhi from other states for their studies.”The college said the hostel will be equipped with modern amenities, including secure residential facilities, study rooms, internet connectivity, a dining hall, common areas and other essential services to provide a comfortable academic and residential environment. Officials said reserving the hostel for EWS and PwD students reflects the institution’s effort to support groups that often face greater hurdles in pursuing higher education away from home.The expansion comes at a time when demand for on-campus accommodation continues to outstrip supply across the University of Delhi. DU admits over 71,600 undergraduate students every year across its colleges, while the university and individual colleges together have only a fraction of that number in hostel seats.
