How to choose the best hostel to study

Hyderabad: When preparing for the most important tests of life, where you stay does matter. In Hyderabad, for government job aspirants, the most preferred places continue to be Gandhi Nagar, Chikkadpally, Ashok Nagar and Himayat Nagar. Hostels here have for long been favourites, also because there are dozens of institutes providing coaching for union Public […]

Hyderabad: When preparing for the most important tests of life, where you stay does matter. In Hyderabad, for government job aspirants, the most preferred places continue to be Gandhi Nagar, Chikkadpally, Ashok Nagar and Himayat Nagar.

Hostels here have for long been favourites, also because there are dozens of institutes providing coaching for union Public Service Commission and Telangana Public Service Commission tests.

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Apart from this, the proximity to the City Central Library at Chikkadpally was another reason for these localities topping the preferred places for job aspirants. Unlike other localities, stalls selling study material, scores of hostels, and students with the books in hand are a common sight at these places.

Though there are hostels in Ameerpet, those are mostly preferred by working people, mostly in the IT and other sectors, while those in Dilshuknagar are mostly opted by people who want to get into the police department, teaching jobs offered by the government, bank jobs, etc.

In Gandhi Nagar, Ashok Nagar, and Chikkadpally, the hostel fee per person for a month ranged from Rs.4,000 to Rs.4,500 for a sharing non-airconditioned room. Most rooms are shared by four people with common washrooms. The hostel fee included breakfast, lunch, and dinner. While most of these accommodation facilities served rice, dal, sambar, one curry, and pickle for lunch and dinner, for breakfast, South Indian dishes were prepared. In addition to this, most of the hostels were equipped with WiFi with the service being included in the monthly charge.

For a separate non-AC room, the charges ranged from Rs.7,000 to Rs.7,500 per month. Similarly, if the room is shared by only two or three people, the rates ranged between Rs.5,000 and Rs 5,500. “As the number of occupants sharing the room decreases, the charge gradually increases. The same business module is adopted by all hostels in Hyderabad,” said A Mahesh, warden of a hostel in Ashok Nagar.

The charge for an air-conditioned room shared by three persons is around Rs.7,000 per head and if a person needs a separate AC room, the charge ranges from Rs.8,500 to Rs.10,000 based on the amenities and the locality. People managing the hostels said all the facilities were provided and that the candidate would have to bring only clothes and other personal belongings. “Some also bring blankets, but vessels and other utensils are not required,” said B Sai running a hostel in Gandhi Nagar.

Students say that in addition to hostel charges, for transport, they spend around Rs.1,500 per month. “The additional amount for commuting and another miscellaneous expenditure is Rs.1,500. As the City Central Library and shops selling study material are nearby, the money spent for commuting is less,” said Y Upender preparing for groups.

Salam Sheik said that most of their time was spent in coaching centres, libraries and there was hardly any expenditure if a person was focused on studies.

“If a person is preparing for exams in a dedicated manner, miscellaneous expenditure is less than Rs.1,500. This goes up if we have food from outside frequently or spend money on leisure activities and use private transport,” said M Saidulu.