The teachers of IIEST Shibpur will meet with the institute’s director to request that he take steps to complete the pending renovation work in the hostels, many of which have been in a state of disrepair for years.

The move comes days after the elder sister of an IIEST Shibpur student triggered anguish among many by posting pictures on LinkedIn showing the deplorable condition of her brother’s hostel. “Is this where future engineers are supposed to live?” she asked.

The IIEST teachers’ association will discuss the condition of the hostels, among other things, at its executive council meeting on Friday and will then meet the director.

The post, which tagged the IIEST director and the Union education ministry, showed crumbling walls and ceilings, water leaking in corridors, and trash-filled hallways.

The teachers said they had been pushing the authorities to renovate the hostels, essential on a residential campus, and “will push the authorities again.”

Teachers’ association secretary Tapendu Mandal said they would also urge the director to take steps to provide accommodation to all students so they don’t have to stay outside the campus, often paying a premium.

First-year students will be on the campus this month. Before their arrival, the pending renovation works must be done. The task should be expedited so the students can be provided proper accommodation,” said Mandal.

A day after Metro reported the poor condition of the IIEST hostels, its director called the newspaper and said that the hostels will be repaired soon.

V.M.S.R. Murthy also said that the repairs were delayed because the students were not on campus during vacation and had locked their rooms.

He explained that the rooms in hostels 15 and 16, whose pictures had been posted, were among the 10 that could not be renovated because the students were away during the vacation.

Joint registrar (academic) and public relations officer of the institute, Nirmalya Bhattacharyya, said: “The renovation is on in full swing following the return of students to the campus. Hostels 15 and 16 have already been renovated. The institute is all set to throw open a new hostel that has 1,000 berths and is equipped with the latest facilities by the middle of September.”

Mandal, a teacher of the metallurgy department, said the IIEST statute says it is a residential campus and therefore every student must be ensured accommodation.