After Student Suicides, Drug Abuse Sparks Concern In Kota

Kota, the coaching capital of the country which has been making headlines for student suicides, now has another big problem to contend with - students getting hooked to drugs.

Experts say the same academic pressure and loneliness - with most engineering and medical aspirants, only in their late teens, being away from their families for the first time - that is driving students to suicide is also leading them to the path of addiction.

Officials said a recent drive by the police has led to the arrest of over 100 drug peddlers and their bosses, blowing the lid off what appears to be a much larger network.

Kota Superintendent of Police (SP) Amrita Duhan said a total of 124 people were arrested for allegedly luring students and other young people in the city to drugs and delivering the contraband to them.

"We made the arrests after identifying those who smuggle drugs or deliver contraband to students studying at various coaching centres. The arrests were made as part of a crackdown on the drug mafia under 'Operation Vajra Prahar'," she said.

Police said smack (heroin), charas and ganja (marijuana) are the drugs that are in the widest circulation.

'High Expectations'

Lakhs of aspirants move to Kota annually to prepare for competitive exams such as the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for admission to engineering colleges and the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for medical courses.

However, some students find the grind stressful amid homesickness, packed schedules, cut-throat competition and a constant pressure from parents and faculty to perform better.

"Parents always tend to have expectations. This tends to build a lot of pressure on us. They always want to know about our performance and marks. I feel afraid, thinking what will happen if I do not meet their expectations," Rahul (name changed), one of the students who fell prey to substance abuse, said.

Gautam (name changed), another student, said: "My friends told me to give it (drugs) a try. I took it, but snorted it and did not inject."

Last year, Kota recorded an alarming 27 student suicides - its highest ever - up from 15 the previous year. This led to both the state and Union governments announcing a slew of measures, including restricting the admission of children below 16 years of age to coaching centres in the city.

With 14 student suicides being recorded this year so far, police are also investigating if any of the students had fallen prey to substance abuse.

(With inputs from Sushant Pareek in Kota, and Shakir Ali and Somu Anand in Jaipur)