According to college authorities, there are about 30 per cent outstation students in each college.

The 1.5 acre campus of Bethune College at 181, Bidhan Sarani has around 1,200 undergraduate and post graduate students. The college has appealed to the higher education ministry for land to set up a new campus with hostel facilities for at least 200 students.

Principal of Bethune College, Manimala Das, said, "We are hopeful that our demands will be met very soon."

Sanghamitra Mukherjee, principal of Lady Brabourne College, which has more than 1,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students, said: "University Grants Commission has given us funding for another hostel for about 180 students." At present, the college has a hostel facility catering to about 200 students. "Another 180 seats will suffice the need of the outstation students," added Mukherjee.

Both the colleges have also added new post graduate courses recently. Lady Brabourne College initiated a Mathematics course in 2006 and will launch a post graduate course in Physics this month. Bethune College started post-graduate courses in Botany and Zoology in 2005. A post graduate course in Mathematics was started in 2007 and the college plans on starting a post-graduate course in English soon.

Das said the college will also install new laboratory equipment for the newly added postgraduate courses in science.