IIT-Delhi looking to restructure curriculum to keep suicides at bay
Facing flak for the increasing number of suicide cases in the country, the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi has moved to renew its curriculum to help students cope with pressure and avoid suicides. The revised curriculum is expected to have lessened focus on theory and provide more hands-on experience. The curriculum will first be approved by the Governing Body before getting implemented.
Rising number of IIT suicides in India
The suicide count from 1981 to 2016 in IITs is indeed appalling. 83 suicides were committed till 2016, the maximum in IIT Kanpur (20) followed by IIT Madras (14). Amongst these 6 were Dalit students.
Why suicides in premiere IITs on a rise?
There's is a growing debate as to why students from IITs succumb to pressure and end their lives. After gruelling years of preparations and admissions, the hope that struggle has ended is quickly dashed. Rigorous coursework and stiff competition makes many students start slacking and the backlogs begin piling. Moreover, support mechanisms in colleges are inadept in reaching out or reducing the pressure.
Complexity of suicides: Where language divide and love becomes fatal
While most IIT suicides are given the simple explanation of academic stress but this may not be the case always. A lot of Dalit students and those hailing from South India commit suicide because their language or caste divide doesn't allow them to mingle with other students. Another case study revealed that many committed suicides over failed love affairs too.
IIT sets up task force to fight rising suicides
In 2013, the IITs had tried to curb student suicides by assigning a task force to study the suicides. The task force had provided a 4-level action plan to deal with the suicides. The steps included counseling of weak students, induction of new students etc. While the IIT council formally accepted the proposals, the four-level plan remained futile.
IITs to have wellness centres to prevent suicides
In a meeting chaired by Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar, the IIT Council decided that IITs will now have wellness centers to cope with suicides. These centers will help the students to deal with stress and will provide a 'non-academic' induction program for freshers to adjust to the new environment. The council also approved introduction of supernumerary quota for women to increase representation.
IIT-Delhi Director talks about student-institution expectation mismatch
V Ramgopal Rao, IIT-D's director, said that an internal survey pointed towards a mismatch between "the expectations of the IIT and the students joining it." While students hope to enjoy a bit, the institutions have no scope for that.
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