CHANDIGARH: When thousands of outstation students cross the lengths and breadths of the country to study in city colleges every year, little do they know that adjusting here will be a humungous task. Prashant Takhellambam, who is from Manipur and a student of Post Graduate Government College, Sector 11, said that when he first came to the city, communication posed a major problem. "The main barrier was that people here mistake our soft spoken nature for timidity and sometimes bully us.

However, with time we have learned how to cope with these things," he said. For most, culture is the biggest issue. Shanta Laikhuram, a Manipur resident and student at Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 11, said, "When we step out wearing shorts, we are called indecent names.

People stare at us as if we are aliens. It makes us feel like we are not a part of the community at large." Something similar happened with Akash Gurang, who hails from Nepal.

"During my initial days at college, I was ridiculed by my mates because of my Emo hairstyle. However, I took it in a positive way and did not pay much heed to them." College authorities say they are aware of the problems outstation students face and have made arrangements to help such students.

"We have a counselling cell in our college and the counsellor always tries to help students on a personal level. Most common problems are not being able to adjust to a new environment and issues with the hostel. We try our best to find solutions to their problems," said Ramneek Sharma, dean PGGC-11.

The counsellor visits every class at the start of the academic session so that students are aware about the options that they have. "Last year, we conducted a project with the PGI to eliminate the problems faced by outsiders and to study it on a psychological level. The result was quite satisfactory as the students opened up about their problems," added Sharma.

PGGCG-11 principal Achila Dogra also expressed similar views. Students belonging to different states and studying together provides an opportunity to learn about different cultures. And if a student faces any problem, there is a counsellor in our college to listen to them and help them out," said Dogra.

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