Is Kota turning into suicide hub from education hub?

By Mehboob Inamdar

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The cut-throat competition to obtain a good rank is putting constant pressure on the aspirants of medical and IIT admissions. With a view to securing a good rank, more than two lakh students move to Kota in Rajasthan every year for the preparation of competitive examinations like NEET, and JEE-Advanced. That’s why it is known as an entrance examinations coaching hub. Nearly 23 students have ended their lives since January 2023, including one from Latur, because of anxiety and stress. The recent rise in suicide cases in Kota city has set an alarm for parents who have sent their children for coaching and guidance currently or wish to send children in future. There is a question of whether the education hub is turning into a suicide hub slowly. This newspaper spoke to psychologists and counsellors of the city on the causes behind the cases and how to deal with the situation.

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How to deal with stress & anxiety:

Dr Aparna Ashtaputre (head of the Department of Psychology, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University) said that students who face negative emotions should be aware of self-talk. “Most of the self-talk is negative. So with effort try to have positive self-talk. Like 'It is ok', ' things are good', 'I am trying.' Negative thoughts are for a short period, once they are expressed their intensity gets reduced. For expression, one can write down, and tell one's close friends or parents. They should do some physical activity every day that will help to release the pressure.

She said students should focus on goals. “Be a problem solver than being a problem speaker. Failure is not 100 per cent as we always learn from it and improve in life,” she added.

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Shashimohan Shirsath, the former divisional educational counsellor said that parents should know the abilities of their children and should not put pressure on them to select a particular field.

He said if parents take a loan or borrow money to send children out of the city, state or country and if their children fail to achieve particular marks, they land an inferiority complex which gradually results in students taking extreme steps to end life.

“Those who have intelligence quotient (IQ) are highly emotional and if they cannot attempt or fail in particular examination, feel depressed. The development of IQ in a child mostly takes place by the age of 17 years. Reasoning, logic and decision-making depend on one’s IQ. The IQ between 125 and 130 is considered high while the IQ between 80 and 90 is low. Those who have low IQ can adjust themselves to the situation. Some students who do not have interest and aptitude but have the ability can crack the entrance examinations for medical and IIT courses,” he asserted.

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What are the causes of anxiety, and stress in children

The experts share some of the causes of anxiety and stress among children. They are as follows

--Change of conditions like city, class, roommates or environment from living with family to living in a hostel

--Sudden change in teaching style, mode of teaching, language issues

--Burden of expectations from parents for qualifying for the exams

--Comparison with friends and family around

--Cut-throat competition between students, resulting in bullying

--Getting very little to no time for hobbies or sports

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What parents shouldn’t do

Counsellors and psychologists feel that parents should avoid following things to maintain confidence among childre. They are as follows

--Economic investment puts a burden on children

--Telling the children about their investments

--Comparison between the siblings and discussing failure with relatives

--Constant discussion on the study and how mistakes can spoil their lives

--Bombarding of success and failure stories that build up pressure on children

--Forcing children to those courses in which they might not be interested.

--Constant discussion about how parents have sacrificed their life savings for the admission