IIT Kharagpur authorities have advised teachers to interact with the students not just about academics but also their mental health and general well-being frequently after two students committed suicides at their homes over the past few weeks.
The dean of students affairs wrote a letter to the teachers on Friday two days after a second year BTech student committed suicide at his home in Madhya Pradesh. Another student from Bengal had committed suicide around three weeks back.
The respective course instructors have been requested to “intersperse their lectures at times with some general discussions, especially to keep the students somewhat relaxed and open”.
Dhrubajyoti Sen, the dean has said, apart from personal and other issues behind these unfortunate incidents, “it appears that one of the reasons could be the confinement of these students for several months in a row now at their homes due to the Covid-19 situation. At this age, these students would have probably been livelier and mentally in a sounder state of mind had they been present physically in the campus, allowing them to share their joys and sorrows with their friends.”
Classes are being held over digital platforms as a precaution against Covid.
Only the research scholars, a section of BTech students encountering resource constraints in attending online classes and final year MTech-MSC students have been recalled.
The dean has written since all the students cannot be recalled because of the pandemic, “it would be better if we (teachers) may be able to interact with them (students) more often and, apart from just discussing academics, also discuss about their general well-being, etc….Can we, therefore, request the respective faculty advisors to please conduct interactive meetings somewhat frequently….?”
Psychiatrist Ranadip Ghosh Roy said the fact that the students were being forced to attend online classes and the prolonged absence from the campuses was affecting the mental health of the students.
“The interaction among the students during a stay on the campus allows a mental purging. Students can ventilate their tension, anxiety through sharing. This prevents them from taking any drastic step. But this may not be possible at home where family members remain occupied with their own engagements,” Ghosh Roy said.
An official of the IIT Kharagpur said they had been told that the BTech student, among other things in his suicide note, had hinted at his disappointment over attending online classes over a prolonged period.
The students’ senate held a meeting with the dean on Thursday over what could be done to address this issue of mental health.
Sen wrote to teachers: “One suggestion that has come from the senate is that apart from the faculty advisors interacting a bit more often with the students through online meetings or phone calls, it would be very good if the respective course instructors also intersperse their lectures…..”
“We have requested the teachers to take care of the mental health, general well being as much as possible,” said the dean.
A plan of recall that has been shared with teachers in the dean’s letter says, senior (final and pre-final year) BTech students encountering connectivity woes and senior postgraduate students will be recalled in November.
In December research scholars of the 2019 batch and some of the leftovers of the November group will come.
Second-year BTech students are likely to be recalled in January. Research scholars of the 2020/2021 batches and first-year BTech students could come from February 2022 and beyond.
