Taking a serious view of growing instances of suicide by students, apparently triggered by stressful conditions in some corporate junior colleges, Telangana government issued show cause notices to 194 junior colleges for violation of guidelines issued by the State Board of Intermediate Education.
Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Kadiyam Srihari, who announced this in the Legislative Council here on Friday, however sought time for constituting a House Committee as demanded by the Opposition to look into the affairs of corporate colleges.
Regulation of colleges
The government initiated action to regulate the schools and corporate colleges and instructed that all the colleges should renew their affiliation from the Telangana government before March 2018. “Give us time to regulate these institutions first,” he said.
Earlier, members from the ruling and opposition parties raised the issue of suicide by the students during the Question Hour and sought to know actions taken by the government.
Leader of the Opposition Mohd Ali Shabbir and Deputy leader Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy said that the students were being treated like prisoners in these institutions and government should take action against the managements. In the incidents where students committed suicide, criminal action be taken against the managements even if the college was not shut. It would act as deterrent to other college managements, Mr. Sudhakar Reddy said.
Stressful schedules
The Deputy Chief Minister said that the TSBIE conducted inquiry into two such suicide cases in August and reported that daily hectic schedules, classes on holidays, frequent weekly tests and lack of proper facilities in hostels were some of the causes leading to stress and suicides among the students.
The police registered FIRs in two cases and show cause notices were given to the junior colleges concerned, he said.
Detailed instructions were given to all the managements of junior colleges to maintain class timings and holidays in line with academic schedule of TSBIE and appoint professional counsellors on a regular basis to counsel students. Free time to be given to students in their daily schedule, regular interaction between parents, teachers and students were other directions. Affiliations would be based on compliance with these instructions, he said.
The district-wise list of affiliated colleges would be displayed after March, the Minister said.
