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Friday, November 6, 2015

Saraf seeks report on student suicides in Kota - TNN


JAIPUR: Higher education minister Kalicharan Saraf on Wednesday sought detailed report on suicides by students this year in coaching hub Kota . The report is to be submitted by the district collector of Kota. Saraf has also asked the collector to prepare an assessment report from the ground about stress levels among the students enrolled in the coaching institutes.

"The department will study the cause of every suicide which will help us in formulating a much needed regulatory policy for coaching institutes in the state. We have asked the local administration of Kota to suggest ways to put an end to this extreme step while talking to all stakeholders," said Saraf over phone. Since May, eight students have committed suicide in Kota as they failed to cope with the pressure of clearing competitive exams like JEE-MainsAdvanced and AIPMT.

Saraf admitted that in the absence of any policy or regu latory body, state has very limited role to play in regulating coaching institutes. To expedite the process of coming up with a regulatory body, the department has sought guidelines for coaching institutes from states like Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharastra.

Sources in the department say that neither they are aware of the exact number of coaching institutes nor they have any idea about the number of students enrolled here. 

"Once the regulation will come into force, the state will ha ve its say in deciding the coaching hours, fees etc for institutes," said a government source.

Kota has over 1.25 lakh students from outside Kota enrolled in coaching centers for cracking seats in IITs and Medical colleges . The suicides have not new phenomena in Kota with four suicides recorded last year. However, this year eight has already recorded since May has highlighted the dark side of the Kota coaching industry.