Kota Diaries | Will Cosmetic Steps Like Fixing Fans and Suspending Exams Arrest Student Suicides? – News18

Install spring-loaded ceiling fans. Put up nets around buildings. Cancel weekly tests and exams for two months. Monitor their activities. These are some of the directions issued by the district administration in Kota to arrest the rising cases of suicides among students in the coaching hub. While their efficacy itself is in question, these steps, at best, are targeted at managing the statistics instead of helping the mental health of students.

Kota in Rajasthan has seen 23 suicides this year among students preparing for the country’s toughest entrance examinations – the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) – conducted to get entry into the country’s premier tech and medical schools. Six of these deaths were reported in August, of which two were reported in a span of six hours last Sunday.

Do Away With Weekly Tests?

According to police records, most suicides have been reported around the time of the weekly test. All coaching institutes hold weekly/fortnightly tests or exams as a measure of gauging students’ progress. A medical aspirant died by suicide in the premises of a coaching institute on Sunday shortly after finishing the weekly test. The test is designed to match an entrance exam paper where students score in percentiles.

“Test results are announced openly for all. Several teachers just come in and ask who are the toppers. Those trying hard to make it through are left out and often get depressed about it,” said Srijan Sharma, a JEE aspirant.

It’s only after the high number of suicides reported this year that the district administration asked institutes to provide one-day off before or after the exam. Previously, the exam was scheduled right after hours of classes without any breather in between, Sharma said.

“The way teachers categorise star performers, who are then made out to be a separate batch with the best teachers, is not right,” said Jyoti Yadav from Bihar.

In December last year, the Kota district administration issued directions to all coaching institutes, hostels and PG accommodations to allow a weekly off for students, cap the maximum class strength to 80, and have mandatory psychological evaluations of students and teachers.

Despite this, the class strength in most batches is around 180-200, at least at the beginning of the year. This number eventually thins out to around 100 due to students dropping out. The institutes have not taken any measures to reduce class strength as per the official directive.

News18 reached out to some of the top coaching institutes to seek their response on the issue, but didn’t get a respond. This story will be updated if and when a response is received.

Are Anti-Suicide Devices of Any Help?

Around 48 hours after the district administration asked hostels and paying guest accommodations to mandatorily install spring-loaded ceiling fans, the second suicide on Sunday was reported from one such establishment.

While the order led to outrage on social media, hostel owners say it just might work and students can be counselled after any such failed attempt.

Bhupendra Sharma, who runs two hostels in the area, said the spring-loaded fan has a rod-like device which prevents the fan from bearing too much weight. “The moment a person’s weight comes onto the fan, the spring opens up and comes down, thus thwarting their attempt. While we can say that there are other methods of taking the extreme step if one has decided to do so, it might just work in some cases and save a precious life. It’s better than not doing anything about it,” said Sharma.

He, however, added that there is much more the administration, institutes as well as parents need to do to prevent such incidents. It’s the hostel’s responsibility to ensure that the student’s problems are addressed or informed to the right authority.

“The parents are away. They just talk on the phone or visit twice-thrice a year. It’s us who need to monitor how a student has been behaving. If there’s the slightest sign of them being withdrawn or not keeping with their daily schedule, we must inform the parents and talk to the student as well,” said Sharma.

Another hostel owner, who owns a chain of hostels in the Rajiv Gandhi Nagar area, said they have censors installed in the fans in all rooms and are also in the process of getting the spring rods installed.

“We got censors installed in the fans last year when several such incidents were being reported and the government had asked hostel owners to take steps to curb the same. The censor would let an alarm out in case a person attempts to hang from a fan. We also ensure that students attend classes and are not remaining aloof,” said the hostel chain owner, who didn’t wish to be named.

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