Hostel is s home away from home. Life here is quite different. One gets to
meet people of varied nature and a feeling of friendship and oneness prevails
all over. When GMC was started, the initial batches students from various
regions of South India. Accommodating them, when the college was in its
infancy, was a big problem. With great difficulty a small building was
allotted to the Men Students in March 1947. Soon it was shifted into a bigger
rented building at Brodipet. Afterwards another building was rented in
Chandramouli Nagar to accommodate the students of new batches. Conveyance was
a problem with hostels away from the college. Some of the students have to
stay in rented rooms and depend on hostels outside for food. 26th Nov 1955 saw
the laying of the foundation stone for the Men’s Students Hostel. The Hostel
was to be built 1 ½ miles away from the college on the Amaravathi Road.
Finally in Aug 1958 it was ceremonially opened by Hon’ble Neelam Sanjeeva
Reddy, the then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. It had a capacity to
accommodate 150 students. In 1964 an additional block was added and is
presently called New Block. The Hostels are located on a campus whose area is
bigger than that of college. After the building of additional block the
playground was improvised and annual sports meets were regularly held there. A
good reading room was added and recreational facilities were improved. In Nov
1964 the All India Congress Committee National Session was held in Guntur and
most of the delegates are hosted in the hostel. This helped the hostel acquire
a telephone connection and fans were provided for all rooms. Conveyance to the
college was still a problem, until 3 buses were sanctioned in the year 1965.
Transport became easier and special trips such as regular library trip, Cinema
trip etc., were organized. Hostel Day Celebrations used to be held regularly
and Guest dinners etc., were also hosted. To be invited as a guest was a
matter of great privilege in those days.
At Present 182 students stay in the hostel, which has 148 rooms. A well
maintained reading room and gymnasium are regularly used by the students. A
new colour television, the Carroms and Table tennis boards are a source of
recreation. The shuttle badminton court and volleyball court were recently
given a face life.
The Hostel water supply is from a bore well in the campus. Since 1994 the
municipal supply was restored. Four candle water filters have been provided
for drinking water. The mess has been a bit unsettled. 1986 saw the closure of
the old student hostel mess. At present only one mess is being maintained by a
private contractor. The habit of carrying food in the afternoon to the college
for the students had been abandoned from 1993 and two bus trips have been
arranged.
On 3rd Dec 1996 the 38th hostel day celebrations were held.
Provision of a study room, a health center, water coolers, regular library
trips, a cycle shed, upgrading the basket ball court and the play ground for
the athletics, renovation of bathrooms and drainage facilities need to be
looked after.
There is a Chief Associate Warden. Many wardens bestowed their parental
care towards students and upgraded the hostel to the present level.
The Hostel has been the residence of innumerable doctors during their study
in GMC and continues to be so for the years to come.
GMC Women Students Hostel
When GMC came into existence in 1946, the college itself had to depend on
the Andhra Christian College for teaching purposes. Provision of hostel
accommodation at that time was a big problem. On repeated representations made
by anxious parents, the District Medical Officer Dr. R.Venkata Rao provided
the accommodation for the girl students in his own quarters.
Shortly the Govt. shifted it to a rented house in Brodiepet. The first
warden was Dr.K.Rajyalakshmi and she used to reside in a house near the
Hostel. As time passed the number of girl students increased and for solving
the problem, a large plot about 3 furlongs away from the college was selected.
This plot was prior occupied by the Sunandamma Missionary. Finally in 1955 the
then Hon’ble Minister for Planning and Public Health opened the Women
students hostel. At present it is called the old block. A residential quarters
for the warden and a building for the “Mess” were constructed. The hostel
could accommodate 48 students and has 25 residing rooms.
In 1956 the first floor of the old block was constructed thus providing
more accommodation. The rooms were improved and additional facilities were
provided. In 1964 another wing was added to the hostel adding 48 more rooms. A
corridor connecting the first floors of the wings was constructed and a
telephone connection provided.
In 1964 when the National Session of All India Congress Committee was held
at Guntur some of the delegates were lodged in the Hostel. The Govt. provided
ceiling fans to all the rooms on the occasion. The Mess was also shifted to
cooking with gas.
Since then the Women Students Hostel has improved slowly to its present
form. At present when the college admits 150 students per year and more than
half of them being girls, the hostel still has problems regarding
accommodation.
At present there are 180 students residing in the 136 rooms of the hostel.
The hostel has a television, Caroms board, and table tennis board for
recreation. A play ground with the tennicoit, shuttle courts is also
available. There is a warden for hostel. In Yester years Hostel days used to
be held regularly but not so at present.
Deficiencies like water shortage are still present. Yet in all fairness it
must be stated that this GMC Women Students Hostel continues to provide the
necessary homely atmosphere for it’s inmates.
