News
A paucity of planning
View(s):The problem of accommodation at the Kelaniya University has regularly interrupted student activities over the past few years.The most recent interruption arose when 300 female students of university forcibly occupied the canteen on the grounds that they have not been provided hostel facilities.
Despite students occupying the canteen for the past seven days, no solution to the problem has been put forward by university authorities.”If we fail to gain a solution we will continue our protest campaign” said Kingsly Gunaratne, president of the students union. Student unions claimed the problem was caused by the university authorities when they switched the hostels of male and female students a few years ago, causing a shortage of hostel facilities for female students.
The problem arose in 2010 when university authorities decided to accommodate female students within the university premises. Resultantly students who were housed at C.W.W. Kanangara hostel with a capacity to house 1,200 hostellers were shifted into the former male hostel within the university premises which could accommodate only 600 persons.
As a result 600 female students were deprived access to hostel facilities because of the limited space. However the present hostel for males has an excess of space.
Students claimed the increase in student enrolment in 2013 and 2014 aggravated the problem Students claimed they had put forward four suggestions to the authorities, but had, had no response to them. [Story and pix by Indika Handuwala]
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It’s not a new launderette or an income generating project set up by the Kelaniya University. Over 300 female students have taken over the canteen and its premises claiming a shortage of hostel facilities