Vijayawada: A series of suicides of Intermediate students has highlighted the pressure heaped upon students in corporate junior colleges. Just two days ago after P. Eswar Reddy, an Intermediate second-year student of Narayana Junior College in Gudavalli took the extreme step, a day scholar student of the Sri Chaitanya College attempted suicide in Vijayawada on Tuesday night, allegedly after being thrashed by a lecturer for poor performance in the internal exams.
Chinta Kalyan, who was studying in the Chaitanya college campus on Pinnamaneni Polyclinic Road, was upset due to the insult at the hands of the lecturer and consumed pesticide after college hours. Students who witnessed Kalyan consuming poison informed the college management who shifted the boy to a corporate hospital where he is undergoing treatment.
The incident sparked protests by students unions on the college campus who demanded the government act on corporate colleges which are taking the lives of innocent youth. “The state government, which is making repeated statements on controlling corporate colleges, is indirectly encouraging them. Two incidents of students attempting suicide took place within three days and officials of the BIE are still hesitating to take action on college,” said PDSU Union state president A. Ravi Chandra.
Meanwhile, state human resources development and education minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao said that the government was serious about harassment and forcible education in corporate colleges and will take stringent action on them after receiving a report of the enquiry.
