SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government has said that more than 1,600 beds are presently available for women students across 23 functional hostels operating under the Higher Education, Skill Development, and Social Welfare departments, while 15 new hostels are at various stages of construction. The figures were revealed in the Legislative Assembly in response to a question raised by MLA Shagun Parihar, offering the first consolidated picture of women’s hostel infrastructure in the Union Territory.
According to data shared in the Legislative Assembly in response to a starred question by MLA Shagun Parihar, the Higher Education Department alone operates more than a dozen functional women’s hostels across various districts, with a combined capacity of over 1,600 beds. The department has also reported varying levels of expenditure, with some hostels having been constructed under schemes such as PMDP, PM-USHA, CAPEX, and UGC funding.
In Jammu district, the Government College for Women (Parade Ground) accommodates 200 students and has incurred an expenditure of Rs 3.30 lakh. Another major facility, the Government College for Women at Gandhi Nagar, has a capacity of 252 students. In Udhampur, a hired building jointly funded by the Higher Education and Social Welfare Departments accommodates 27 students. The twin hostels at Government Degree College (GDC) Rajouri together provide for nearly 150 students, one built under PMDP and the other under the SC/ST grant.
The Kathua district has the largest capacity, with GDC Kathua hosting as many as 740 students at an expenditure of Rs 50.87 lakh. Other operational hostels include those at GDC Poonch (33 students), GDC Boys Baramulla (60 students), GDC Uri (48 students), GCW Anantnag (60 students), GDC Anantnag (24 students), and GDC Women MA Road Srinagar (126 students).
In addition to the functional hostels, 15 new facilities are currently under construction across different districts. Among them, the largest is the 288-bedded hostel at GDC Paloura, Jammu, funded under PMDP. Other ongoing projects include hostels at GDC Bhaderwah (100 beds, Rs 39.11 lakh expenditure), GDC Ramnagar (50 beds), GDC Padder (40 beds, Rs 11.98 lakh), and GDC Mendhar (100 beds, Rs 198.13 lakh). Several new hostels are also being developed under the PM-USHA and CAPEX programmes in Kathua, Ramban, Rajouri, Doda, Udhampur, Chenani, and Kupwara.
The government disclosed that work on the GDC Doda hostel has been halted due to paucity of funds. The Rajouri Sunderbani hostel, built under CAPEX, has recorded the highest expenditure among the ongoing projects at Rs 308.85 lakh, while the Thannamandi hostel has reached Rs 174.62 lakh.
Under the Department of Skill Development, four women’s hostels attached to government polytechnics — two each in Jammu and Srinagar — are fully operational with a total capacity of 389 beds. These hostels were executed by the Housing Board and Engineering Wing of the Directorate of Technical Education, with an expenditure of Rs 360 lakh, all of which has been fully utilised.
The Social Welfare Department informed the House that one Working Women’s Hostel at Roop Nagar, Jammu, is presently operational and fully occupied. The four-storey building offers dormitories, a kitchen, study room, library, day-care centre, and security quarters, with an intake capacity of 25 women. It operates round the clock under the supervision of security staff and provides a safe and accessible environment for working women.
During the last three financial years, the government released Rs 46.71 lakh for the Working Women’s Hostel initiative, of which Rs 11.81 lakh has been utilised. The department added that new “Sakhi Niwas” hostels have been approved for Srinagar, Baramulla, Anantnag, Kathua, and Rajouri districts, with suitable buildings already identified and staffing processes underway to make them functional soon.
The Health and Medical Education Department also provides accommodation for female students through nursing and paramedical hostels attached to medical colleges across all districts, while the School Education Department offers residential facilities for girls through Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs).
The government said that construction of a 50-bedded hostel at ITI Bani under the Skill Development Department is nearing completion, with 90 per cent physical progress and a cumulative expenditure of Rs 297.25 lakh up to March 2025. An additional Rs 22.25 lakh has been released during the current financial year for completion.
The data collectively indicate a growing infrastructure network for women’s hostels across Jammu and Kashmir, though several projects remain incomplete or delayed due to financial constraints. The government maintained that with the upcoming “Sakhi Niwas” facilities and completion of the ongoing hostels, the availability of safe and accessible accommodation for female students and working women will substantially improve across the Union Territory.
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