Idukki: The protest by students of the Idukki Government Nursing College demanding hostel facilities has ended after the district administration intervened, ensuring accommodation arrangements for all students.

District Collector Dr Dinesan Cheruvat announced the resolution following a meeting on Thursday at the Collectorate, attended by representatives of the Medical College, Nursing College and students.

According to the Collector, students will be housed in two locations, the Working Women’s Hostel in Painavu and the Medical College hostel. The Working Women’s Hostel, which has 32 rooms, will allocate 16 to 18 vacant rooms to nursing students. With three students per room, around 64 can be accommodated there. Additionally, 18 rooms in the Medical College hostel will house 72 students, with four in each room.

Dr Cheruvat said arrangements were also being made for 12 male students who were yet to receive accommodation. Construction work at the NGO quarters for Medical College staff is expected to be completed within two months, after which staff will be relocated and the existing PWD quarters converted into housing for the remaining students.

The protest, which began on October 16, intensified after a mediation meeting was shifted from the Collectorate to the CPI(M) district office, where a controversial remark by district secretary C V Varghese sparked criticism. The issue has now been amicably settled following the Collector’s direct intervention, ending the students’ eight-day agitation.