After the deadly collapse of a building housing a paying guest (PG) accommodation for boys in New Delhi’s Satya Niketan, the Delhi University (DU) has announced plans to expand hostel accommodation, taking the combined capacity of the institute and its colleges to 12,754 seats. 

The institute said the expansion would address the rising demand for residential facilities and ramp up accommodation options for students. DU has also asked its colleges to review existing facilities and fast-track hostel construction wherever projects are already ongoing. 

Varsity’s hostel capacity set to more than double

As per the statistics released by DU, the university had 3,422 hostel seats at the university level over the past 100 years. With 3,922 additional seats being formed, the figure is set to more than double to 7,344. 

The expansion is also set to extend to individual colleges. The university said its colleges have 3,788 hostel seats at present, a figure that is expected to rise to 5,410 after 1.622 new seats were added. DU said the construction of hostels to accommodate the new seats is already underway and numerous projects are likely to be completed in the coming months. 

At the university’s Dhaka Complex, construction of a 1,450-seat Institute of Eminence (IOE) hostel is nearing completion. Moreover, a 1000-seat women’s hostel, named Nirbhaya Residential Accommodation, is also under construction, along with a 1050-seat studio apartment project. 

Several more projects are expected to be announced in the coming months. Once the planned projects are completed, the combined hostel capacity of the DU and the colleges affiliated to it are projected to reach 12,754 seats. 

College principals directed to review hostel facilities

DU has directed the principals of all the colleges affiliated with it to take stock of the residential facilities currently available to students and identify areas where capacity can be raised. The university has instructed colleges to expedite work on hostels that are already under construction. 

Principals have also been told to explore the possibility of developing new hostel facilities on their respective campuses. 

Where a possibility of suitable opportunities persists, colleges have been instructed to prepare plans at the earliest. The exercise will include assessing available space, government schemes and other requirements needed to take up new construction projects. 

According to the university, the number of hostel seats is expected to more than double over the next few years compared with the past four to five years. It also plans to submit several additional projects to the government soon. 

Satya Niketan collapses brings accommodation concerns into spotlight

The hostel expansion comes days after a five-storey residential building being operated as a boys’ paying guest accommodation collapsed in Delhi’s Satya Niketan neighbourhood on the afternoon of September 6, 2026. 

Seven people died in the collapse, which included five students from the DU, while 12 others sustained injuries. The building was situated near DU’s South Campus, and was around 50 years old. As per the Delhi Police FIR cited in the supplied support, the structure allegedly violated its permitted G+1 configuration and had instead been constructed up to G+4, with the FIR attributing the alleged violation to pure greed.