Hansraj College has a gaushala but no hostel. That single sentence, shouted by protesting Delhi University students, captures the absurdity of campus priorities in 2026.
The college’s old hostel was demolished four years ago to make way for two new hostels for 560-600 students at Rs 80 crore. Construction is still “under progress.” Meanwhile, on a sliver of land that students allege was meant for a girls’ hostel, there now stands a shed with two cows. Principal Rama Sharma clarifies: “Having cows on campus is not the same as having a gaushala.” Semantics aside, the optics are damning.
Across DU, hostel shortage is systemic. But Hansraj crystallizes the cost. With no hostel, students like 18-year-old Aditya Singh Gaur pay over Rs 10,000 for a cramped PG with three beds a room - more than the course fee. Anushka from Haryana asks for funds to pay PG rent. The students’ union promises hostels every year; nothing happens.
In a university where CUET cut-offs are 99%, admission without accommodation is half a promise. A gaushala - even two cows - signals cultural posturing. A hostel signals inclusion. When you demolish a 200-capacity hostel and leave students to the mercy of North Campus’s exploitative PG mafia for four years, you are telling India’s small-town toppers: you can crack DU, but you can’t afford to live in it. The Rs 80 crore project may come up, but the trust deficit already has.