New Delhi: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognizance over media reports claiming that three students of a coaching center died by suicide in Rajasthan’s Kota.

The three were aspirants of the National Entrance Eligibility Test (NEET). Two of the girls belonged to Bihar.

The incident has brought spotlight back on punishing pressure, the teenagers are experiencing at private institutes in the city for limited seats in pursuing technical and medical education.

The Commission has observed that that the contents of the media report, if true, amount to a grave issue of human rights. Over the years, Kota has become a hub of private coaching centers for the NEET aspirants.

“Students, from across the country, are staying in hostels/paying guest houses with a high expectation of success. This is putting them under a lot of pressure. There is a need to regulate private coaching institutes,” said the NHRC in a press release.

Need For Regulatory Mechanism 

“The Commission feels that there is a need to formulate a regulatory mechanism and since the regulation of higher education is of the State subject, the need for evolving mechanism shall fall upon the State, in consultation with the Central Government,” said the commission.

The commission has issued notices to the Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan, Secretary, Higher Education, Union Ministry of Education, and the Chairperson, National Medical Commission, calling for reports.

Expected to Submit Report 

The Chief Secretary, Rajasthan is expected to submit a detailed report of the incident.

It must also spell out the steps taken or proposed to be taken by the State about the regulatory mechanism to control the private coaching institutes in view of the large number of reported suicides of students.

In addition, it must also contain a formulation of a long-term plan to adequately address the issue of psychological and behavioral abnormality of the students undergoing coaching in different private institutes in Kota.

They should provide adequate counseling to them, including the parents, so that they should not feel lonely or under huge pressure of expectation of the family members and the friends, etc.