The Delhi government will launch an online portal to digitally map student paying guest (PG) accommodations, recording details such as room capacity, basic facilities and other essential information after the Satya Niketan incident involving a five-storey PG building. The initiative will be accompanied by inspections of 100 identified PG accommodations and proposed safety and surveillance requirements.
The decisions were taken at the second meeting of the High-Powered Committee on Student Accommodation and Safety, chaired by Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood on Thursday. Representatives of the Delhi Development Authority, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhi Police and universities in the capital attended the meeting.
The proposed portal is intended to create a consolidated record of where students are living, the type of accommodation being operated and the facilities available to them. Delhi University and the MCD are expected to conduct an initial test of the portal within the next two to four days. A registration campaign for students is planned after the preliminary testing.
The government has also directed joint teams of the MCD and DDA to inspect 100 identified cases over the next three days. The inspections will examine whether PG accommodations meet safety standards and comply with applicable legal provisions. The exercise is expected to help authorities identify properties where rules are being violated.
A sub-committee has been formed to review provisions of the Master Plan and the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act relating to PG accommodation. It will include representatives of the DDA, Delhi government, MCD and the Vice-Chancellor of Delhi University. The committee will examine the possibility of legally compliant and safe PG operations within a five- to six-kilometre radius of major educational hubs, as well as in group housing societies and areas represented by resident welfare associations.
The proposed regulatory framework includes mandatory closed-circuit television cameras at PG entrances, exits and common areas. The committee has suggested retaining recordings for 40 to 45 days. At the same time, the proposed arrangement is expected to protect the privacy of students by excluding private living spaces from surveillance requirements.
The initiative places student housing within a wider administrative coordination process involving planning, municipal regulation, policing and universities. The portal and inspections are being pursued together, indicating that the government is seeking both a record of existing accommodations and immediate checks on their physical and legal conditions.
The committee is scheduled to meet again after Dussehra to discuss the sub-committee’s report and consider finalising the proposed regulatory framework for PGs and student accommodation. The supplied report does not specify the portal’s final launch date, the total number of PG accommodations in Delhi or the penalties that may apply to properties found in violation.
