Govt taking multi-pronged measures and providing psychological support to students to avoid incidents of suicide: Education Ministry
New Delhi, August 10
To address the issue of suicide, the Government is taking multi-pronged measures and providing psychological support to students, teachers and families for mental and emotional well-being to avoid incidences of suicide, Minister of State for Education, Sukanta Majumdar, informed Lok Sabha in a written reply on Monday.
An initiative of Ministry of Education, MANODARPAN, covers a wide range of activities to provide psychological support to students, teachers and families for mental and emotional well being such as National toll-free helpline to provide guidance to callers through trained counsellor; live interactive sessions 'Sahyog' and Webinars 'Paricharcha' that are organized regularly to create awareness about the importance of mental health among all stakeholders, including students in all States/UTs etc. These sessions are telecast on PM e-Vidya channels and are also available on the 'NCERT Official' YouTube Channel, the written reply stated.
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has mandated the appointment of a Counsellor & Wellness Teacher in every Secondary and Senior Secondary school affiliated with it in its Affiliation bye-laws. In Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS), there is a provision for engagement of two counsellors (one male and one female) in each Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) on a contractual basis, and total 830 counsellors have been engaged on a contractual basis in JNVs across the country as of February, 2026, it added.
The Ministry of Education in July, 2023 circulated a framework guideline on emotional and mental well-being of students in Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) with a request to take proactive measures to incorporate the same in the institutional functioning and instil a feeling of confidence in the student community. The guidelines emphasised counselling services, early distress identification, suicide prevention SOPs, student support networks, strengthened grievance redressal mechanisms, and periodic institutional review to ensure sustained effectiveness.
Guidelines for Regulation of Coaching Centres (January 2024) have been issued by the Ministry of Education, which mandate student-support and protection measures such as counselling facilities, transparent fee structures, prohibition of batch segregation, and safeguards against practices that intensify academic pressure - extending mental-wellbeing protections beyond campuses, it added.
All IITs, IIMs, NITs and IIITs have put in place dedicated mental health or counselling centres within their campuses, staffed with full-time or visiting professional counsellors, clinical psychologists, and in some cases, psychiatrists. A large number of institutes often host mental health training sessions to raise awareness, reduce stigma, and educate students about mental health issues. These sessions cover topics such as stress management, coping strategies, and recognizing the signs of mental health issues. Some Institutes offers on/off-campus counselling services, where students can meet with mental health professionals, government said.
— ANI
Reader Comments
It's heartening to see this focus. But honestly, appointing counsellors is just one part. We need to change the entire education system's approach - reducing rote learning, marking based on exams alone, and the rat race for IIT/NEET. Parents also need counselling to stop comparing their kids with the neighbour's child. 🤔
The coaching centre guidelines are a game-changer! Finally, banning batch segregation and mandating counselling facilities. As someone who went through the Kota pressure-cooker environment, I know how toxic it gets. Better late than never. 👍
Please also focus on tier-2 and tier-3 cities and rural areas. Counsellors in JNVs are good, but what about government schools in villages? Mental health awareness is still a taboo subject there. We need to take these sessions to local communities, perhaps through Anganwadis and Panchayats.
Important measures, but we need to look at the data on implementation. Having one counsellor for hundreds of students in JNVs might not be very effective. Also, what is the follow-up mechanism? As a parent, I'd love to see more parent-teacher interactions focusing on emotional well-being, not just academics.
This is a good move, but I wish the government also regulated the commercialisation of education coaching. Parents often force kids into coaching centres because of peer pressure. We need societal change, not just institutional measures. Still, kudos for starting the conversation. 🇮🇳
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.