The hostel model of business is turning out to be a highly profitable venture as India’s youth is increasingly flocking to the cities for educational and employment pursuits. These individuals, who are mostly bachelors, students or working citizens, require a convenient mode of accommodation, which is now rendered through hostel facilities of various kinds. While entrepreneurs may choose from a wide range of options offered by this segment, this article particularly deals with the norms for starting a women’s hostel and procedure for obtaining hostel license in Tamil Nadu.
The norms for initiating and running a women’s hostel or home is provided in The Tamil Nadu Hostels and Homes for Women and Children (Regulation) Act, 2014. The Act regulates the functioning of hostels, lodging houses, homes for women and children and matters connected therewith.
The Tamil Nadu State regulations prohibit the establishment, maintenance or operation of any hostel, lodging house or home for women and children in the absence of a license issued under the Act. Any person desirous of such a pursuit is therefore required to file an application for the license to the Collector of the respective district. The application must be duly supported by a fee which wouldn’t be more than Rs. 3,000.
The Collector may decide for or against granting the license. If granted, the license will be valid for a period of three years after which it can be renewed. If not, the Collector needs to provide reasons for its rejection in writing.
A license for this purpose comprises of:
A license holder is prohibited from performing the following acts without obtaining prior permission from the respective Collector:
An application for license renewal must be made at least three months prior to the expiry of the initial license. Delays, if any, would be condoned on valid grounds provided the application for the same is filed before the date of expiry of license.
The concerned district collector may cancel a license on the following grounds:
Some Important Notes:
A licensee who intends to wind up a hostel may apply for the withdrawal of the license granted in respect of the particular hostel. This must be done by issuing a notice to the concerned District Collector before six months of the proposed withdrawal.
Every home for women and children, including women’s hostels, must be registered with the Act within the prescribed period. For this purpose, the owner or manager of the home must file an application to the Collector, who will issue a certificate of registration in the prescribed form and manner. Homes managed by the government are exempted from these rules.
All lodging homes established for this purpose must function with a manager, who in this case must be a woman. If no such managers are appointed, the person who lets the premises for accommodation will be considered as a manager, again provided she is a woman.
The manager sop appointed is obligated by these provisions to render a fitness certificate to the owner of the premises. The certificate must be issued and attested by a Medical Officer, who is not ranked below a Civil Surgeon. Moreover, the owner of the premises is required to conduct a verification of the manager with the local police before finalizing her appointment. The latest Governmental rules provide that there shall be one manager or resident manager for every fifty inmates.
The owner or manager of a hostel, lodging house or home for women and children is endowed with the following responsibilities:
Powers are often intermingled with restrictions, as is the case here. The manager or resident manager of such homes are prohibited from:
The hostel must be housed in a building which has been approved by the competent authority of the relevant law, who as we know in this case, is the District Collector. If the premise holds more than fifty inmates, closed-circuit television or a digital video recorder shall be installed at all entry and exit points.
As a matter of apparent compulsion, the appropriate number of security personnel must be appointed in every hostel, lodging house or home for women and children to provide round-the-clock security to the inmates. Such an appointment must be preferably made from among the ex-servicemen, retired police officers and home guards who are not aged above fifty years. As in the case with the appointment of the manager, each security personnel shall be appointed after verifying his/her antecedents with the local police. The appointed guards must be assigned to every entry and exit points of the hostel. However, they are not permitted to enter the building without the permission of the manager or resident manager.
Note: Boys and girls must be housed in separate buildings. However, in exceptional circumstances, they can be lodged in separate rooms.
Every hostel established for this purpose needs to maintain a visitor’s register, wherein details such as name, address, and purpose of the visit of all visitors is stored. The manager or resident manager is held accountable for this task.
In the event of any untoward incident which has its bearing on the body, mind or property of any inmate of the hostel, the manager of such premise needs to report the same to the jurisdictional police and the concerned district Collector by substantiating the incidents and circumstances leading to such incident, to the best of her knowledge.
The concerned District Collector is entitled to enter and inspect any hostel at a reasonable time to ensure that the provisions of the Act are being complied with. Upon inspection, the authority may demand the production of any document, register or record to be aware of any information connected with the functioning of the institution.
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