Task force for well-being of students unveils portal
The NTF was set up earlier this year in the context of student suicides across premier institutions, after parents of several students who had died by suicide — including those of IIT Delhi's Ayush Ashna and Anil Kumar, both from Scheduled Caste backgrounds — approached the court seeking directions on caste discrimination, institutional support mechanisms, and administrative responses. The petitioners also included the families of Dalit students Rohith Vemula (2016) and Payal Tadvi (2019). The court constituted the task force in March.
Members of the NTF told The Hindu that the panel is conducting institute visits, stakeholder and expert meetings, alongside the newly launched surveys. One member said the NTF had so far visited six institutes in Delhi and Bengaluru, including AIIMS, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Ramjas College, the Indian Institute of Science, and Bangalore Medical College.
On future visits, the member said, 'The NTF will also visit private universities. There are over 50,000 institutes across the country. It is not possible to visit all of them. The task force is yet to decide on whether to visit institutes like IITs, given that the incidents in those institutes have already been investigated by multiple committees.'
The 12-member NTF is headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ravindra Bhat, with experts in development studies, psychiatry, and civil society, and the Joint Secretary of Higher Education as Convener. Secretaries of the Ministries of Home Affairs, Education, Social Justice, Health, Women and Child Development, and the Department of Legal Affairs are ex-officio members.
Its mandate includes identifying 'predominant' causes of student suicides - including ragging, discrimination, academic pressure, financial burden, and stigma around mental health - analysing existing regulations to assess institutional and systemic shortcomings, and recommending steps to improve student mental health and prevent suicides.
An NTF member said that during visits, the panel holds interactions with all stakeholder groups, including closed-door sessions with students to enable them to share grievances freely.
The surveys, available at ntf.education.gov.in, include separate questionnaires for students, parents, institutional representatives, mental health professionals, and the public. The site, accessible in English and Hindi, also provides student support resources with helpline numbers and a platform for institutes to share data.
While the matter was being heard, the University Grants Commission issued a draft regulation for promoting equity and addressing discrimination on campuses, after petitioners argued that the 2012 regulations were inadequate. Following the draft's release, the petitioners submitted that the 2025 version diluted earlier provisions.
The court permitted the UGC to proceed with the notification process, noting that the NTF's mandate covered the subject and that the regulation could be amended based on the task force's recommendations, if required.
An interim report is expected in September, following which the NTF is scheduled to submit the final report by the end of this year.
Those in distress or having suicidal tendencies could also seek help from Sanjivini, Society for Mental Health suicide prevention by calling 011-40769002 or any of the numbers found in this link.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
12 minutes ago
- Hans India
Mamata slams ‘Kesari Chapter 2' makers for misrepresenting Khudiram Bose
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday lashed out at the makers of the Bollywood film Kesari Chapter 2 for allegedly misrepresenting Bengali revolutionary Khudiram Bose as 'Khudiram Singh'. The criticism came as she paid tributes to the freedom fighter on his death anniversary. In a social media post, Mamata Banerjee called the misrepresentation an 'attack on the Bengali language' and an insult to those who laid down their lives for India's freedom. "My respectful obeisance on the death anniversary of revolutionary Khudiram Bose. Let me write something. Recently, in a Hindi film, revolutionary Khudiram was called 'Singh'. Why are those who gave their lives for freedom being insulted? Will language terrorists even hold onto the immortal revolutionary Khudiram?" Banerjee asked. Recently, a controversy erupted after Khudiram Bose was referred to as Khudiram Singh in the Akshay Kumar-starrer Kesari Chapter 2. In June, an FIR was registered against the producers of the film at Bidhannagar South police station for allegedly misrepresenting historical personalities from West Bengal. The complaint had accused the film of inaccurately portraying Khudiram Bose as "Khudiram Singh" and describing Barindra Kumar Ghosh as "Birendra Kumar" from Amritsar. One of the country's youngest freedom fighters, Khudiram Bose, was hanged on August 11, 1908, at the age of 18 for his role in the Muzaffarpur bomb case. Banerjee, in her social media post, further claimed that the son of Bengal was shown as a son of Punjab. "Our indomitable teenager from Midnapore has been shown as a son of Punjab. Unbearable! But we have always paid tribute to this man, a symbol of patriotism and supreme sacrifice," she said. Banerjee also highlighted her government's initiatives to preserve Bose's legacy, which include developing Bose's birthplace, Mahabani, and its surrounding areas. "For the further development of Mahabani and the adjacent areas, which are associated with the birth anniversary of Khudiram Bose, the Mahabani Development Authority has been established. Apart from this, everything has been done, from installing a statue of Shaheed Khudiram in Mahabani to renovating the library, a new spacious auditorium, conference room. An open stage has also been set up. In addition, modern cottages have been built for visitors, and the traditional Khudiram Park has been revived. The entire area has also been decorated with lights," she said. She further highlighted that her government also named a metro station in Kolkata after him.
Scroll.in
43 minutes ago
- Scroll.in
SC upholds conviction of activist Medha Patkar in defamation case filed by Delhi LG VK Saxena
The Supreme Court on Monday refused to interfere with the conviction of activist Medha Patkar in a 24-year-old defamation case filed by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, Live Law reported. A bench of Justices MM Sundresh and N Kotiswar Singh, however, set aside a penalty of Rs 1 lakh imposed on the activist. It also modified the probation condition requiring her to appear before the trial court periodically, instead allowing her to furnish bonds. The case was filed in 2001, when Saxena was heading the Ahmedabad-based non-governmental organisation National Council for Civil Liberties. Saxena alleged that Patkar had defamed him in a press note titled 'True face of patriot', which the activist had issued in November 2000. The case, filed in an Ahmedabad court, was transferred to the chief metropolitan magistrate's court in Delhi in 2003. Patkar pleaded not guilty to the charges in 2013. In May 2024, Metropolitan Magistrate Raghav Sharma convicted Patkar in the case. She was found guilty of criminal defamation and held liable to serve two years in jail, pay a fine, or both. On April 2, Additional Sessions Judge Vishal Singh upheld the verdict convicting Patkar. On April 8, however, Singh granted Patkar one year's probation in the case, noting that the offence she had committed was not grave enough to warrant imprisonment. However, Patkar had been expected to appear before the court on April 23, furnish probation bonds and deposit a fine of Rs 1 lakh. As the activist did not appear in court or comply with other orders, Singh said that Patkar was deliberately violating the directions and issued a non-bailable warrant. On April 25, Patkar was arrested but released hours later from custody. Her release came after her counsel told the court that the probation order was still valid and that the activist would furnish the probation bonds. The activist had earlier moved the Delhi High Court against her conviction. On July 29, the High Court upheld Patkar's conviction. It said that there was no illegality in the decisions taken by the trial court and the appellate court to convict the Narmada Bachao Andolan leader in the case, adding that the orders were passed after consideration of evidence and law. The May 2024 judgement had said that Patkar's press note was a direct attack on Saxena's personal character and loyalty to the nation. The court also observed that Patkar had accused Saxena of 'mortgaging the people of Gujarat and their resources to foreign interests' and held the allegation to be a 'direct attack' on his integrity and public service. 'Such allegations are particularly grave in the public sphere, where patriotism is highly valued, and questioning someone's courage and national loyalty can cause irreversible damage to their public image and social standing,' the court had said.
Mint
43 minutes ago
- Mint
Govt plans changes to bankruptcy code to resolve clashes with money-laundering law
The Indian government is preparing amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to streamline its interplay with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after asset attachments by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) highlighted conflicts between the statutes, two people informed about discussions in the government said. Close to a dozen court orders with conflicting interpretations of the immunity from prosecution and asset protection granted under IBC to an unrelated new management of the bankrupt company necessitated these legislative amendments, they added. The idea is to ensure that the two laws work cohesively, they said, adding discussions are underway at the highest levels of government about the legislative changes needed for this. 'Officials of the ministry of corporate affairs, the revenue department and the regulators have already held discussions on the matter. The government is attempting to bring a bill in the current session of Parliament, but if the necessary approvals take longer, it may be introduced in the winter session," said one of the two people cited above, adding that the specifics of the legislative changes would be finalised soon. Clarity needed A dozen or so court orders since 2018, including the 2 May Supreme Court order in the case of Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd, have raised questions about the interplay of the two laws and an urgent need for more clarity, said the other person cited above. On 2 May the Supreme Court said the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal's (NCLAT's) stay on the ED's ₹4,025-crore asset attachment was invalid as NCLT and NCLAT could not review public law actions. That order also annulled JSW Steel's ₹19,300-crore debt resolution plan for Bhushan Power and Steel. The court, however, left open the interpretation of the IBC provision that protects assets from attachment by law enforcement agencies such as ED for pre-debt resolution offences, subject to riders. But on 31 July the Supreme Court recalled its judgement, terming it a case fit for review. Another ongoing case in the Supreme Court—committee of creditors vs Directorate of Enforcement—is considering questions on the primacy of IBC Section 32A over PMLA and NCLT's jurisdiction, said the first person quoted above. Section 32A of the IBC offers immunity from prosecution to the new, unrelated management of a bankrupt company and protects its assets from being attached for violations under the previous management. The idea is to encourage investor participation in distressed assets and give such companies the best possible chance of a revival by offering a clean slate. It took effect in December 2019 with the aim of furthering the government's goal of accelerating debt resolution and improving the health of the corporate and financial sectors. Subodh Dandawate, associate director - regulatory services at Nexdigm said, 'To uphold the IBC's objective and ensure legal clarity, it is essential to amend Section 32A, reinforcing its supremacy over conflicting statutes such as the PMLA during the bankruptcy resolution process." The 'clean slate' principle enshrined in the provision is vital to attract resolution applicants, he added. 'However, conflicts between the IBC and the PMLA – both containing overriding clauses – have led to inconsistent judicial interpretations. Courts have even held against the jurisdiction of NCLT and NCLAT in PMLA-related matters, creating uncertainty around Section 32A's application," Dandawate said. Queries emailed to Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, the ED, the ministry of corporate affairs and the finance ministry remained unanswered.
