The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : A word of caution for parents

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Wednesday, Apr 22, 2009
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

A word of caution for parents

Swathi.V

HYDERABAD: The recent suicide by an Intermediate student K. Neelima has brought to fore the ever-burning issue of teenage trauma with respect to marks, ranks and seats.

The extreme step by the girl from Repalle has come as a caution for many parents just when they are weighing various options for their young ones fresh out of their Class X. Most often, unsuspecting parents would come to know of their kid’s balance-beam act between life and death, only after he or she trips over to the other side.

What drives the youngsters to end their lives has always been a mystery for the parents even while not being so for impassive observers.

Eminent psychiatrist P. Raghurami Reddy says that the frustration is the result of conflict between the student’s brain that is given and the goal that is imposed.

“It is the conflict arising from the socially-determined goal to be executed by the genetically determined brain, which drives the student to the point of no return. Contrary to the goal on which there is no restriction, the brain remains limited in its capacity,” Dr. Reddy observes.

Goals imposed on the students are not sacrosanct or bound by any rationale. They are largely determined by family which is a microcosm of the whole society.

“For example, about 50 years ago, the goal would be getting a government job or succeeding in civil services examination. Till a few months ago, software job was the commonly accepted goal which is not so anymore. Students, after identifying themselves with a specific goal, tend to overvalue the whole process of achieving it. It builds up a false idea in their mind that the goal unachieved is the end of life,” elaborates Dr. Reddy.

Stay in a hostel, as in the case of Neelima, worsens the situation as the student can not find any outlet to his or her grief. “Even shops and establishments have a regulation that determines working hours and holidays. How can we force children to slog with no stipulation of time?” wonders Dr. Reddy.

Public scrutiny of corporate educational institutions where a group of citizens is allowed barrier-free entry into the colleges to interact with children and offer help is necessary, he says. “For every suicide, there are 10 failed attempts. And for every failed attempt, there are 10 suicidal ideas. The issue is enormous and a study should be conducted to find the causes and address them,” he says.

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