SRIKAKULAM: The rise in the suicide cases of students in this district has prompted the authorities to constitute a committee to monitor the situation and implement a series of initiatives to curb the trend.
The district has reported a series of suicide cases involving school and college students of late. A couple Vijaya Kumar and Maha Laxmi, both 18 years old and BSc second year students of a private college in Rajam, committed suicide by jumping in front of a running train on August 25. Parents’ refusal to accept their love affair was cited as the reason.
Prior to this incident in January, a 14-year-old girl, who was depressed over her poor academic performance, jumped off a running train at Palasa. A few months ago, another 14-year-old student committed suicide on the railway track near Summadevi station after the school management questioned him over his irregularity and poor attendance in the class.
Taking a serious view of such incidents, the Srikakulam administration has constituted a district monitoring committee led by a joint collector rank officer. A series of counselling sessions will be organised under the aegis of the panel for the children in the age group of 6 and 18. As part of the move, the administration is also mulling conducting awareness programmes, apart from imparting lessons on ethics and values in all schools and colleges in the district.
The monitoring committee will have joint collector as its chairman, ICDS project director, DEO, regional officer for intermediate education, DVEO, DPRO, project directors from BC, SC and SC welfare departments, district coordinators for degree colleges and voluntary organisation as its members.
“Now, all schools and colleges will mandatorily interact with the parents twice a year and measures will be initiated to deal with the examination stress of the students,” says P Rajanikanta Rao, joint collector-2 and the chairman of the monitoring committee.
The panel will monitor the behavioural changes of students and conduct meeting involving both the private and government school and college managements.“The panel will ensure that all schools and colleges in the district are conducting counselling sessions and classes on ethics. A complaint box will also be set up in each school and college and only the panel will hold the rights of opening the boxes,” he says.The administration will frame the role and responsibilities of the committee and the programme would be launched soon, he adds.
Initiatives to stop suicides
Schools and colleges to mandatorily interact with parents twice a year
Counselling sessions and classes on ethics to be conducted in all educational institutions including the private ones
Measures planned to deal with exam stress of students
Under the chairmanship of joint collector, monitoring panel to have ICDS project director, DEO, regional officer for intermediate education, DVEO, DPRO, project directors from BC, SC and SC welfare departments, district coordinators for degree colleges and voluntary organisation as its members