Privacy Policy

To provide seamless hostel discovery, accurate room allocations, and authorized resident onboarding, MeraHostel collects specific categories of user information:

1.1 Personal Identification Details

• Basic Contact Information: Full name, verified mobile phone number, email address, gender, date of birth, and home address.
• Emergency Contact Records: Guardian or parent contact names and contact phone numbers for resident safety.
• Resident Profile Information: College/university name or corporate workplace details for student/professional verification.

1.2 KYC & Verification Documents

In compliance with local municipality bylaws, hostel owner policies, and law enforcement guidelines, residents may be requested to submit government-issued identification (such as Aadhaar Card, PAN Card, Voter ID, or College/Work ID) during tenant onboarding and check-in.

1.3 Technical & Device Information

When you browse our portal, our systems automatically capture technical details including IP address, browser type, device specifications, operating system, and geolocation data (with your device permission) to show you nearby hostels and calculate commute distances.

We process your personal information strictly for legitimate business operations and tenancy management:

• Hostel Discovery & Direct Connection: Facilitating direct inquiries and scheduled visits between prospective residents and verified hostel proprietors.
• Onboarding & Bed Allocations: Maintaining room records, bed allocations, check-in dates, and digital tenant agreements.
• Operational Notifications: Sending transactional alerts, rent invoice due dates, maintenance status updates, and food schedule announcements via SMS, WhatsApp, and email.
• Platform Security & Fraud Prevention: Preventing identity impersonation, fraudulent rental listings, duplicate reviews, and abusive behavior.
• Product Improvement: Analyzing search filters, popular localities, and platform performance to enhance user experience.

MeraHostel offers digital rent payment and deposit collection facilities. We place the highest priority on your financial security:

3.1 Aadhaar & KYC Verification

Where Aadhaar verification is initiated for resident onboarding, verification is performed through authorized UIDAI-compliant DigiLocker/UIDAI interfaces. Aadhaar numbers are masked where required by law, and raw biometric credentials are never collected or stored.

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. Information is shared only with authorized parties under strict non-disclosure conditions:

• Hostel Owners & Wardens: When you book or onboard a room, your basic tenant details and emergency contacts are shared with the property administrator for resident register maintenance.
• Authorized Service Providers: Trusted cloud infrastructure (AWS/Google Cloud), SMS gateways, and payment partners who operate under strict data protection contracts.
• Legal & Law Enforcement Compliance: We may disclose information if required under valid subpoenas, judicial orders, or statutory police tenant verification directives.

We utilize cookies and lightweight browser storage mechanisms to improve your navigation experience:

• Essential Cookies: Critical for authenticating sessions, keeping you securely signed in, and persisting search preferences.
• Analytics Cookies: Aggregated analytical tools (such as Google Analytics) that help us measure user traffic patterns and page load responsiveness.

You can disable cookies through your browser preferences. However, doing so may impact certain personalized features such as saved favorites and active login sessions.

We employ comprehensive technical and administrative security protocols to protect your data against unauthorized access, loss, or destruction:

• Transport Encryption: End-to-end 256-bit SSL/TLS encryption across all communications between your browser/app and our servers.
• Role-Based Access Controls (RBAC): Strict authorization hierarchies ensuring that property owners only access records of residents registered in their specific premises.
• Regular Vulnerability Audits: Continuous server monitoring, intrusion prevention systems, and automated security scans.

We retain personal data as long as your MeraHostel resident or owner account is active, or as necessary to fulfill tenancy records, resolve disputes, and comply with tax and audit regulations.

When you vacate a hostel and settle all outstanding dues, you can request account deletion. Once verified, identifying records will be securely purged or anonymized from active operational databases in accordance with statutory retention timelines.

MeraHostel services are directed towards adult students (college/university level) and working professionals aged 18 and above. We do not knowingly solicit or collect personal information from individuals under the age of 18 without express parental or legal guardian consent during hostel admissions.

Under applicable data protection frameworks, you have significant rights concerning your personal information:

• Right to Access: View and inspect the personal information stored in your tenant profile dashboard.
• Right to Rectification: Request swift corrections to inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated details.
• Right to Opt-Out: Unsubscribe from promotional announcements or marketing emails at any time using the one-click unsubscribe link.
• Right to Erasure: Request the deletion of non-statutory account data upon conclusion of your tenancy agreement.

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect technological advancements, statutory amendments, or new service offerings. Significant modifications will be communicated through platform notifications or updated timestamps on this page.

In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and rules made thereunder, the contact details of our Grievance Officer are provided below: