Kota is a coaching hub for pupils seeking to prepare for college entrance exams. Getty Images
Kota is a coaching hub for pupils seeking to prepare for college entrance exams. Getty Images
Kota is a coaching hub for pupils seeking to prepare for college entrance exams. Getty Images
Kota is a coaching hub for pupils seeking to prepare for college entrance exams. Getty Images

India orders springs in fans to prevent pupil suicides in coaching hub


Taniya Dutta
  • English
  • Arabic

Authorities in India’s Kota city have directed hostels and guest houses to install spring-loaded fans in a desperate attempt to stop pupils from taking their own lives.

The directive comes after an 18-year-old pupil died by suicide on Tuesday.

It was the fourth such death in August and the 21st this year – the highest in eight years in the city known as the “coaching factory”.

The city, in the north-western state of Rajasthan, has been rocked by about two dozen such cases this year involving schoolchildren hanging themselves from the fans.

Kota is known for its innumerable coaching centres. Thousands of pupils come to the city to prepare for exams.

“Kota is an education hub but 15-20 students have committed suicide this year. To prevent such mishaps, the district administration has decided to install the spring device,” senior police officer Brij Mohan Bairwa told The National.

“We are making it mandatory in all hostels and PGs and everywhere where students stay. We have directed police to visit every hostel and accommodation and make sure the device is installed.”

The spring-loaded fans are designed to uncoil when they detect a load of more than 20 kilograms, Mr Bairwa said, effectively detaching the fan from the ceiling if someone attempts to hang themselves.

They will also have sensors that sound an alarm in the event of an attempted suicide.

“If anyone attempts [suicide], the fan will break and the student will survive. We can prevent suicide cases with the device,” he said.

Exam pressure

The move comes amid mounting pressure on pupils to achieve good grades to pursue careers in engineering and technology.

India has the world's largest number of engineers and more than 6,000 government-approved engineering institutes.

Pupils have achieve high marks to secure admission to the colleges, with the Joint Entrance Examination one of the country's most popular.

There are about 2.4 million students enrolled each year in engineering and technology courses at various government and private institutions, the Human Resource Development Ministry has said.

Competition for places is intense due to the large number of applicants, expensive private colleges and limited seats at government institutes.

Every year, hundreds of thousands of pupils apply for the entrance exams but only 20,000 to 25,000 pass the exams and are eligible to enrol with top institutes such as the Indian Institute of Technology.

Pupils at the Bansal Classes coaching institute in Kota, which has a sprawling five-acre campus, 10,000 pupils and better amenities than most schools in India.
Pupils at the Bansal Classes coaching institute in Kota, which has a sprawling five-acre campus, 10,000 pupils and better amenities than most schools in India.

To prepare for the entrance exam, more than 200,000 pupils from far and wide, mostly from middle class families, sign up for months-long coaching classes in Kota and stay in tiny rooms.

However, over the past decade, several pupils have committed suicide after coming under immense pressure to pass the exams and meet their families' often unrealistic hopes.

In the last eight months, at least 21 schoolchildren have died.

Many experts criticised the government directive, saying it was a temporary measure to deal with a serious issue, but Mr Bairwa said the device would help to bring down such cases.

“It is one of the measures to prevent suicides. Along with this, we are also in touch with NGOs and experts to provide counselling to students,” he said.

A 17-year-old pupil from impoverished Bihar state died by suicide in a hostel on August 11. Another suicide was reported on August 3. Both pupils had arrived in the city four months ago, police said.

At least 15 pupils died by suicide in Kota last year while 18 such deaths were reported in 2019, 20 in 2018, seven in 2017, according to police data.

No suicide took place in 2020 and 2021 as the coaching centres were closed due to Covid-19 restrictions.

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One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient

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How being social media savvy can improve your well being

Next time when procastinating online remember that you can save thousands on paying for a personal trainer and a gym membership simply by watching YouTube videos and keeping up with the latest health tips and trends.

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Norlyn Torrena, a clinical nutritionist from Burjeel Hospital advises her clients to be more technologically active “most of my clients are so engaged with their phones that I advise them to download applications that offer health related services”.

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How Sputnik V works
11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi

Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)

Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)

Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)

Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).

Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)

Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)

Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)

Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)

Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia

Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)

Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)

Results

Stage 7:

1. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal - 3:18:29

2. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep - same time

3. Phil Bauhaus (GER) Bahrain Victorious

4. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep

5. Cees Bol (NED) Team DSM

General Classification:

1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - 24:00:28

2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers - 0:00:35

3. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep - 0:01:02

4. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:01:42

5. Neilson Powless (USA) EF Education-Nippo - 0:01:45

Updated: August 18, 2023, 11:38 AM`