As competition and stress escalate, mental health has become a major casualty of this economic progress. The alarming rate at which students are committing suicide is a reflection of the larger mental health crisis in our society. Renowned Mumbai-based psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty says children should be screened for mental health before before being accepted into coaching classes. He shared that coaching classes segregate students based on their grades, thus destroying their self-confidence. He urges parents and students to forget shame and seek help. He outlines a plan to prevent suicides, which include creating an army of mental health soldiers. In a candid chat with The Free Press Journal, Dr Shetty addresses the rise in mental health problems due to social media, offers tips for a healthy mind, and more.
Excerpts from the interview:
Is India becoming the depression capital?
Absolutely we are the diabetics and depression capital now. One out of eight people in the world have mental illness — we are not talking about stress. In India it is one out of seven. So it is really a mental health epidemic in the country.
The rate at which students are committing suicide in Kota is worrying. Would you send your child if he wanted to do JEE?
If I have to send my child to Kota I will do many things before that. I will not go by what he says. I’ll not go by what I feel. I will first find out if his brain is compatible to the education of IIT. Which means that just getting 99 per cent in ICSE does not equip you for applied maths, applied science— physics and chemistry. First is the compatibility of my son’s brains to the curriculum of IIT. Second, I would also check what are his other skills and desires. I don’t believe that every science student should go to IIT.
Did you interact with the coaching class administration in Kota?
When I went to Kota, I asked them what are you doing for mental health. They said they are giving a one day break in the week. Ek din ki chhutti se kya hota hain? I asked them if they have any extra curricular activities. Only one coaching center said we keep Bhagwat Saptah. I found absolute ignorance and callousness towards the mental health of children.
What are some preventive measures you suggest to tackle this situation?
What I strongly feel is that the entire IIT coaching classes should be audited by the government and there has to be a white paper about what has worked and what has failed. What is also extremely important is that all colleges, and schools children should be screened for mental health issues. Find out if they are taking any psychiatric medications, if they’ve had severe stress in the last few years. Have free mental health camps in the entire campus once a month. Educate the parents and students of the high- risk signs that they need to look out for and to report these signs.
What advise do you give parents?
At a very early age parents should teach their children to share bad news early. That will only happen if parents share their bad news openly with their children - about salary cuts, financial troubles etc.
What do you feel the coaching classes are doing wrong?
All these classes take weekly tests and based on the results they separate the children like a caste system. The children with good grades are kept in a separate division. Those with lower marks are kept in a different class. They destroy the self- confidence of the children like that, by this segregation. These coaching classes shouldn’t just accept every student to fill their bank coffers. They know who can do it and those who cannot. This is not merely a business, it’s very important to have a sense of social responsibility.
