The coaching institutes in Kota, Rajasthan, have been directed to suspend routine tests for students preparing for NEET and other competitive exams. The directive comes in the wake of an alarming increase in student suicides.
The order was issued by Kota district collector OP Bunkar on Sunday night. The decision to halt routine tests for the next two months is aimed at providing ‘mental support’ to students. It is being seen as a response to the tragic incidents that occurred on Sunday, August 27, when two NEET aspirants took their lives.
Avishkar Shambaji Kasle, a 17-year-old student, was found dead shortly after leaving a room on the third floor of his institute where he had taken a mock test. In a separate incident, Adarsh Raj, an 18-year-old also preparing for NEET, was found hanged in his rented flat around 7 p.m the same day.
These incidents have brought the total number of student suicides in Kota to 22 this year alone. The city is known as a hub for competitive exam coaching, attracting over two lakh students annually who come to prepare for exams such as the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for engineering and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to medical colleges.
The high-pressure environment and rigorous testing schedules have often been cited as contributing factors to the mental health crisis among students in Kota. The recent directive to halt routine tests is seen as a step towards addressing this issue.
However, it remains to be seen whether this measure will be effective in curbing the rising number of student suicides. It also raises questions about the broader issues at play – the immense pressure students face while preparing for competitive exams and the lack of adequate mental health support.
As we continue to grapple with these tragic incidents, it’s clear that more needs to be done to support our students’ mental health. The halt on routine tests is just one step in what needs to be a much larger conversation about mental health in our education system.
