Lucknow: Following a strong protest over the quality of food served at Kailash Hostel, the Lucknow University administration has decided to allow girl students to directly monitor food preparation in the hostel mess.Residents of the hostel will also be allowed to prepare an inclusive menu schedule for breakfast, lunch and dinner.The decision was taken on the directions of vice-chancellor Prof JP Saini, who conducted a surprise inspection of the hostel on Thursday morning. The inspection followed a demonstration by students on Wednesday against the alleged serving of contaminated food, which reportedly led to food poisoning among five residents.Earlier in the day, the university had decided to shut the hostel mess after students staged an overnight protest over the issue. However, the order was later withdrawn following a request from the students.According to the university, the new arrangement is aimed at improving food quality, hygiene and transparency by giving students direct participation in the functioning of the mess.The VC later visited Homi Jehangir Bhabha Hostel on the university’s second campus, where he interacted with students and had lunch in the dining hall. He also directed the construction department to develop a dedicated parking area near the hostel to prevent haphazard parking.LU spokesperson Mukul Srivastava said: “The VC interacted with students, reviewed the facilities available to them and issued instructions for immediate improvements, including a dedicated parking area at Homi Jehangir Bhabha Hostel, safety mats in the gym and an additional table-tennis facility. The administration will follow up on these directions to ensure the required improvements are implemented within the stipulated timeframe.”
