The Goa cabinet on Wednesday approved setting up of counseling centres for students who are victims of stress, often linked to poor academic performance. The decision comes less than 48 hours after a Class 12 girl student committed suicide after she answered the chemistry paper badly in the board examination. Speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting, Chief Minister Digambar Kamat said that Rs.1.14 crore has been set aside to set up campus counseling centres in government schools and state-aided schools. “In the past, there have been instances of student-suicides and one incident happened recently. The counseling centres will be handled by empanelled non-government organizations who will counsel students in need,” he said. Each organization will be paid Rs.15,000 monthly for their services, the chief minister added. Seventeen-year-old Sayani Pandit was on Tuesday found hanging from the ceiling at her home in Ponda, 30 km from Panaji. She had come home disappointed after her Class 12 chemistry examination, according to police.
