A student was studying at a desk in a dormitory room when plaster suddenly fell from the ceiling onto his neck. Injured, he immediately moved away from the spot. Moments later, another piece of plaster, this time with an iron rod attached, fell at the exact same place. By moving away in time, the student narrowly escaped serious injury.
The incident occurred at around 1:30 a.m. yesterday (Monday) in Room 109 of Shahjalal Hall at the University of Chittagong. The student’s name is Habib Ullah Mizbah, a fourth-year undergraduate of the Department of Human Resource Management.
Students allege that they have long been facing such hazards due to the dilapidated condition of the hall and are compelled to live in the rickety building. According to the hall authorities, the matter has already been reported to the university administration. However, due to insufficient budget allocation, full-scale renovation has not been possible.
Speaking to Prothom Alo in the morning, the affected student, Habib Ullah Mizbah, said, “The first piece of plaster that fell was relatively small in size and it landed on my neck while I was studying. The second piece was much larger and had an iron rod attached. Had I not moved away in time, it would have struck my head. I have informed the hall provost about the incident.”
When asked, Shahjalal Hall Provost Fuad Hasan stated, “The risky condition of the hall had already been reported to the university administration. A committee was also formed to assess whether the hall remains habitable. Under such circumstances, we initially did not want to allocate many of the rooms. However, due to the severe accommodation crisis, allocations had to be made.”
He further added that repair work had begun in certain identified vulnerable areas, but the hall’s budget was inadequate. Moreover, no separate allocation is made for such renovation, as the responsibility lies with the engineering department.
The University of Chittagong has a total of 14 residential halls, accommodating around 7,000 students. However, the university’s total student population is nearly 30,000. Consequently, the housing crisis has long been severe.