North-West University (NWU) has revised the estimated costs of damage to property caused in student riots‚ bringing the number down to R85 million. The Department of Higher Education and Training had said that the estimated costs of damage during protests at the university totalled R151 million since October.Damage caused by arson attack at UJ estimated at R100 millionAn arson attack at the University of Johannesburg in the early hours of Monday morning caused damage worth R100 million‚ the university said. In a written response to the National Assembly‚ Minister of Higher Education and Training Blade Nzimande has detailed the cost of student protests to campus properties around South Africa‚ saying the total now stands at R459.8 million since October 2015.‘No room for further disturbance’ at NWU as Mahikeng campus reopensNorth-West University's Mahikeng campus reopened on Tuesday morning without any disruptions. The department is in the process of investigating which universities will be lodging insurance claims to cover some of the damage costs‚ he said.But university spokesperson Willie du Plessis has now said that the R151 million was an early estimation‚ made before it was established that parts of the Mafikeng campus' main administration building‚ torched in protests in February‚ could be saved.The University of KwaZulu-Natal‚ University of Limpopo‚ Tshwane University of Technology and the University of the Western Cape have lodged claims with insurers estimated at a total of over R106 million.Insurers have to date paid out R28.2 million.Department spokesperson Khaye Nkwanyana said that government will have to cover the costs that remain after insurance pay outs.“Public institutions are funded by government. We have to address the damages‚ we can't leave it like that‚” he said.He added that while some institutions would be able to chip in to fix up campuses due to other streams of income like donations from wealthy alumni‚ previously disadvantaged universities will need more help from the government.So far the department has contributed an amount of R40.496 million towards damages at five historically disadvantaged universities - the University of Fort Hare‚ the University of Zululand‚ the University of the Western Cape‚ Walter Sisulu University and the University of Limpopo.Meanwhile staff at the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University returned to work on Thursday after exams were suspended on Wednesday due to student protests in which a public road was damaged...