224-room Northeast hostel soon at JNU, to cost Rs 11 crore

NEW DELHI: A 224-room hostel will be constructed at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) at a cost of Rs 11 crore to accommodate 424 students from the Northeast, the government said on Monday.
The four-storey building will come up on an area spread over one-and-a-half acres and the construction work will begin soon, according to a statement issued by the ministry of development of north eastern region (DoNER).
The first-of-its-kind hostel will accommodate 200 boys and 200 girls, besides housing physically challenged students in 24 rooms.
Officials have briefed DoNER minister Jitendra Singh about the progress of the work related to the JNU hostel and other projects. Singh was told that Rs 11 crore has been released for the construction of the JNU hostel and the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) is in the process of issuing the tender.
The process of land acquisition for another hostel in Rohini has started. The Rohini facility is meant for students from the Northeast studying in colleges and institutions of Delhi University. The Delhi Development Authority has released Rs 2.5 crore for the land. The hostel will be built on an area of about five acres.
The status of the North Eastern Cultural and Information Centre, to be set up in Dwarka in Delhi, was also discussed at the meeting. The estimated cost of the project is around Rs 50 crore.
The minister said the centre would act as a cultural and convention and information hub of the region in Delhi. It will have a library-cum-reading room and an art gallery highlighting the Northeast.