Educations reforms needed to minimise suicides
Mr Shantaram Naik, MP has demanded reforms in education and examination
system as a measure to minimize increasing incidents of student suicide
in the country.
Raising the issue during zero hour in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday Mr.
Naik demanded that the 1986 Education Policy should be replaced by new
one and it should address issues pertaining to students suicides.
Mr. Naik said that, on 8th February a girl student in Ponda Goa,
studying in St XII, committed suicide as she could not answer her
chemistry paper well. Similarly, another young boy in Kundaim, Goa
studying in school committed suicide, allegedly because his parents
scolded him.
South India, according to some figures, has world’s largest number of
suicides. Out of every three cases reported every 15 minutes in India,
one is committed by youth in the age group of 15 to 29, according to a
study, he said.
Mr. Naik further said that, some years back a boy in Kerala who secured
91% marks committed suicide. He had realized that his father had a loss
in business and had taken loan for his sister’s studies. The boy did not
want to burden his parents with more loans for his further studies and
ended his life.
Although there are some key factors which lead to such suicides, one of
them is parents insistence on their wards getting high percentage and
repeatedly reminding them of that, he said.
Students, remain under pressure all the time thinking that he/she may
not be able to satisfy parents aspirations and, many of them are worried
that failure to get high percentage may compel their parents to seek
loan of lakhs of rupees to secure them admission in higher studies, Mr.
Naik said.
Merciless loot in the name of donation which is going on in the country
is one of the prime reasons which leads students to extreme end, Mr.
Naik added.
Family conflicts, domestic violence, failure of crop in agricultural
families etc. are also be some of the reasons which lead to such
tragedies but, our educational system too, which lays stress on
memorization is equally the culprit, Mr. Naik further mentioned.
Television and media publicity to the toppers, although, it is their
due, has an effect on the minds who lagged behind, and undue publicity
to suicide cases specially of celebrities does more harm to the society
than good, Mr. Naik added.
There are cases where students run out of their house before exams and
there are also cases where students who commit suicide for fear of
getting low marks, turn out to be rankers when they are no more, Mr.
Naik said.
Mr. Naik further mentioned to the House that due to modernization of our
society, students fall in love at the tender age and many of such
relationships have their ups and down. This has also surfaced as one of
grounds for increasing cases of suicides among students.
Shantaram Naik
