TRICHY: A lack of proficiency in English among students from rural areas and the complex they develop due to their inability to converse in the language are being cited as reasons for the increasing number of suicides and attempts to suicide in colleges in Trichy district in central Tamil Nadu.
Going by the statistics obtained from Trichy police, the tragedies occur at regular intervals in engineering and arts colleges. In the city, police registered four cases of suicides of students, including two girls, in the year 2011. Likewise in the current year, three suicides, including that of a girl, have been reported since April 2012. All the seven suicides were committed in the college premises. However, there were some suicides committed outside the colleges as well.
"We have come across seven such cases, particularly in engineering colleges from the year 2011," said a senior police officer seeking anonymity. Many students attempt suicide, but they are fortunately rescued, he said. Police investigations found that students hailing from rural areas have a problem conversing in English language when they join engineering colleges with English medium. "It poses a serious problem for students from villages. They find it difficult to understand the subjects and they perform poorly," said the officer.
"They feel embarrassed by their inadequacy and they lose hope and take the foolish step of ending their lives. Besides the language problem, other issues such as family disputes, love affairs and others remain the main cause behind the suicides," added the officer.
Recalling her first day in college, a former BTech student of Anna University-Trichy S Vijayalakshmi, hailing from Erumaipatti village, said, "I felt I was in a different world as I did not know English. But I had enough confidence to overcome the problem." Vijayalakshmi gradually learnt the language and even excelled in her studies. "But many students feel ashamed to discuss the issue with friends and professors. They lose hope that they can ever grasp the language and end up even contemplating suicide," she said.
Soft skill trainer E Paul Guna Loganath said "a 'bridge course' was essential in the first year, not only for students hailing from rural areas but also for the urban students, who have a problem speaking and understanding English. "Except arts colleges, many of the engineering colleges do not pay heed to the students' problems and do not conduct such classes. The faculty should also reach out to the students by understanding their problems so that the feel free to clarify their doubts," Loganath pointed out.
Trichy-based neurologist Dr M A Aleem, who has some experience in psychological counselling, said, "The students might have inferiority complex due to language barriers. But it can be overcome if they are helped to
gain confidence."
-Times of India
24/9/2012
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