Kota: Spring-loaded fans to be installed in all hostels & PGs as city reports 22 students suicide cases this year

Kota, Aug 18: The Kota district administration issued an order on Thursday requiring all hostels and paying guest (PG) accommodations to install spring-loaded fans in every room “to provide students mental support and security”. This action was taken in response as the city reports 22 students suicide cases in almost 8 months.

 

 

These suicide cases have shaken the nation’s coaching hub and sparked calls for urgent reforms in the town in Rajasthan.

 

“To provide mental support and security to the students studying/living in them and to prevent suicides from increasing among coaching students in Kota city, all hostel/PG operators in the state are directed to install a security spring device in the fans at every room, as discussed in Saturday’s meeting,” the official statement issued by Kota district collector Om Prakash Bunkar read.

 

The district administration also urged owners of coaching centres, hostels, and PGs to follow a December 2022 order mandating a weekly day off for students, a class size cap of 80 students, as well as required psychological testing for both students and teachers.

 

The letter further stated that non-compliant lodgings and institutions will be seized and the appropriate action taken against the owners. Accordingly, several Paying Guest (PG) accommodations and hostels installed spring-loaded fans in the rooms of Kota to decrease suicide cases among the students. The video of the installations was shared by the news agency ANI.

 

 

Also, Naveen Mittal, President of the Hostel Association commented on the issue and said that “90-95% of hostels in Kota have already installed spring-loaded fans but many PG accommodations are undefined and there is no coordination with the owners. It is a big challenge for us and also for the administration to make these PG owners follow the guidelines.”

 

 

Rise in suicide cases

 

This comes a day after the city of Kota reported its 22nd suicide case in the last 8 months on August 15. One 18-year-old boy identified as Valmiki Jangid came to Kota a year ago in July 2022. He was a native of Bihar’s Gaya and was studying in a coaching institute for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Mains examination. He wanted to get admission into the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT). But he committed suicide on August 15.