As cases of student suicides in Rajasthan's Kota continue to rise, the district administration has developed a questionnaire for students with an aim to find out if the students are struggling with depression.
The questionnaire would have a total of 21 questions both in Hindi and English, in connection with signs and symptoms of stress. While part one of the questionnaire will have questions related to the physical and mental health of the students, part two will inculcate general questions related to the overall health.
"The questionnaire would be divided into two parts. Students have to give a rating from 0 to 3 on each question," an official familiar with the development told India Today.
"This rating is to be given on the basis of experience of the last one or two weeks. D, A, and S are written in front of every question, signifying depression, anxiety, or stress. Whatever rating the student gives, the score will be calculated on the basis of his answers in the respective category. This score varies," the official added further.
He added that in the depression category, a score of 0 to 9 is normal, 10 to 13 is mild, 14 to 20 is moderate and above 21 is worrying. While, in the anxiety category, the score is normal up to 7, mild from 8 to 9 and moderate from 10 to 14 and a score above that is worrying.
As for the stress category, normal conditions are up to 14, mild from 15 to 18, moderate from 19 to 25 and above that, the situation is worrying.
This comes as twenty-four students have died by suicide in Kota this year.
"In order to provide mental support and security to the studying/residential students, the examinations, being conducted from time to time, in all coaching institutes operating in Kota, have been stayed with immediate effect for the next two months," read an official release by the district administration on Sunday.
The district administration also issued an order mandating the installation of spring-loaded fans in all hostel rooms and paying guest accommodations in the city. Kota district collector OP Bunkar issued the order which aims to “provide mental support and security to the students studying and living in these accommodations, and to prevent suicides from increasing coaching students”.
On Wednesday, the state government constituted a team to probe the rising suicide cases among students. The team comprises three psychologists.
More than two lakh students move to Kota, a coaching hub, annually to prepare for competitive exams such as the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for admission to engineering institutes and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical colleges.
(With inputs from Jaykishan Sharma)