Challenges Faced by IBA Girl’s Hostels in Ramadan

The beginning of the month of Ramadan is marked by a shift in the energy of campus life. The moment you enter the IBA campus you see sleep-deprived students dragging themselves to the class waiting for their day to end, empty cricket and football grounds, and no students chatting and waiting in the canteens for their orders to be ready. It seems like campus life has come to a halt.

The clear shift in campus life shows how we all are trying to adjust to this new routine. This made me think about how IBA Girl’s hostelites adjust to this new shift. How do they experience the month of Ramadan? This curiosity led me to discover the not-so-fun side of living in a hostel.

Information needed before proceeding further….

…..there are two IBA Girl’s hostels one is near the main campus of Karachi University and the other is on the city campus on the 9th and 10th floor of the Aman Tower.

The situation in Main Campus Girls Hostel

After conversing with some hostelites of the main campus girl’s hostel, I learned that they are only offered two meals in Ramadan – suhoor and dinner. Furthermore, no separate meals -other than suhoor and dinner- are offered to those who are non-Muslim or who are not fasting due to medical or other reasons. These highly unpleasurable circumstances are still manageable when a facility of mess is available.

Situation In City Campus Girls Hostel

It is in the City campus hostel where the situation gets worse. There is no mess facility in the city campus Hostel. In addition, the hostelites are provided with only one meal a day- dinner. Since there is no mess, they either have to take the meal being offered to them or order from outside. Both of these are inconvenient solutions to the problem they will be facing for the next 30 days.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the month of Ramadan brings about a significant change in the life of students. While the adjustments may seem manageable for some, they can be quite challenging for others, as highlighted in the situations of the IBA girl’s hostels. It is important to realize that hostel life is not always as exciting as people think, and the difficulties faced by hostelites need to be acknowledged and addressed.