Chennai: In view of students awaiting their board exam results and admission in to various colleges, the 104 Helpline has taken it upon themselves to provide psychological counseling, in their third phase, to students and parents. The phase, which began on Thursday, has already seen 500 calls. Prabhudoss B., head, marketing and hospital relations, GVK EMRI, which operates the 104 helpline, said, “The three phases were introduced to provide comprehensive counselling.
During phase three, which is the peak period, students and parents are counseled about how to face the results confidently. “They must shed their fear of failure,” he stressed.
With the Supreme Court imposing the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) on students, who wish to apply for medicine, this year, the helpline is expecting to get a higher number of calls.
Explaining the first two phases (which saw 12,000 calls this year), he said, “In the first phase, which started in January, students were counseled on different kinds of food they should eat and the amount of sleep required. Parents were made aware of ways their children could build their confidence, concentration, and also fight diseases during the exams. During the second phase, students called in case their exam did not go well.”
“Last year, we received many calls from students who scored well yet did not get good enough cut-offs for colleges. The total number of calls we received last year, until after the results were out, was 25,000,” he informed.
The helpline, not only counsels students who completed their board exams, but also those attempting exams like civil services. “We also receive a number of calls from students who have suicide ideations. We counsel them, dissuade them, call up their families, and ensure that we follow up on them,” Prabhudoss added.
The helpline may be helpful to some extent as it helps students deal with the pressure of getting good scores that parents tend to put on them,” said Gitanjali, a parent of a CBSE student awaiting her results.
