File photo of Higher Education Minister Dr M C Sudhakar
Credit: DH Photo/S K Dinesh
The state government has decided to constitute a committee to set Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for all higher education institutions in the state to handle students caught while copying during the examination.
The report, submitted by Bangalore University Vice Chancellor Dr Jayakara S M on a student’s suicide reported at PES University, Bengaluru, was placed and discussed in detail in the Executive Council meeting of the Karnataka State Higher Education Council held on Thursday. The meeting decided to constitute a committee.
Interacting with journalists after the meeting, Higher Education Minister Dr M C Sudhakar said that the committee would comprise psychologists, and vice-chancellors.
“It’s not that all students have suicidal tendencies, but when they are caught indulging in malpractice, they are scared to face their parents, which is what happened in the case of the PES University student,” he said.
The student in question was left unattended, even after the mother was informed of the incident, and being asked to come to the college.
“In such cases, parents should not be intimated about the incident before it is investigated in detail. The examiner must know how to handle the situation without mounting pressure on students,” Sudhakar said.
The SOP will be binding on all higher education institutions, including private and deemed-to-be universities, said the minister. “Incidents of student suicides have been reported at few other institutions, but not owing to exam pressure. Our committee will concentrate on exam pressure and malpractice-related issues while framing the SOP,” Sudhakar added.
In July 2023, a first-year BTech student – Aditya Prabhu – died by suicide after he was caught by the invigilator for having brought his mobile phone to the examination hall. Aditya’s mother was informed, and the student was subsequently left unattended. However, while waiting for his mother to reach the college, Aditya plunged to his death from the eighth floor of the building.
Many VCs proposed the introduction of ‘Women Studies’ as a mandatory subject at all public universities. Although the proposal was discussed in detail, no decision was taken on the same.
The meeting also decided to direct all universities to allocate 7% of their resources for research-related activities.