Though this may give a fillip to the Telangana agitations,the UPA government is veering around to the view that a new state at this juncture is a strict no-no.The favoured opinion is to accept the sixth option formulated by the Srikrishna Committee,which is to maintain status quo while empowering Telangana region by creating a Telangana Regional Council. Highly-placed sources told that an announcement to this effect might be made after Parliament passes the finance Bill. But before any announcement, home minister P Chidambaram will hold another all-party meeting with the 8 political parties concerned to forge a consensus on this option,the sources revealed. The UPA government is inclined to go with the sixth option suggested by the Srikrishna Committee as it expects major opposition only from the TRS.However,the steps needed to counter a possible agitation by the pro-Telangana parties including the TRS,BJP and CPI in the event of the Centre going with the sixth option is still being worked out, the sources added.
It is understood that chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy visited New Delhi last week to discuss this issue.In the course of the meetings,Kiran Kumar told Congress president Sonia Gandhi and other bigwigs in the government and the party that a categorical announcement should be deferred at least until the completion of the budget session of the state assembly.Otherwise there are chances of the state government getting derailed, sources quoted Kiran as telling Sonia.The Srikrishna panel had suggested in its report that the Telangana Regional Council should be headed by an MLA from the region enjoying the rank and status of a cabinet minister in the state government.It will be constitutionally provided with funds and will have its own secretariat.The membership of the council should be restricted to MLAs/MLCs and the number would depend on the number of subjects it is handling and its work load.
The separate state votaries may argue that such councils are not of much use as they had proved earlier.One Telangana Regional Council functioned from 1958 to 1969 and in 2008,YSR constituted the Telangana Regional Development Board,both of which did not help the region much.The Srikrishna panel is of the view that the council proposed by it would be more effective as it would be enabled constitutionally and armed with funds. According to sources,the top bosses of the UPA government discussed the option of going with the fifth option as well,which the Srikrishna panel had graded as second-best.This option,of dividing the state into Telangana and Seemandhra with Hyderabad as the formers capital and new capital suggested for the latter region,is fraught with too many problems such as huge expenditure required for the construction of a new capital,backlash in the Seemandhra region as well as regional disputes over sharing of river waters and other natural assets.
The Centre,which is facing several demands for smaller states,is said to have concurred with the view that the sixth option would be useful in addressing regional aspirations elsewhere in the country as well.
================================
ALARMING RISE IN SUICIDE CASES -T-unrest playing havoc with young minds
In the last two days,an alarming six suicides were reported in Hyderabad, of which 4 involved students, including that of a 16-year-old Class X student B Radhika, a resident of Kukatpally, who committed suicide fearing poor performance in the board exams on Friday. Specialists,however,are not surprised with the spurt in these cases,who are reporting a 20-30% rise in such cases this year and attribute it to the T unrest.They note that this examination season they have seen a disturbing rise in the number of emotionally disturbed students,with many fearing the loss of an academic year owing to the uncertainty prevailing in the state.
Dr Poornima Nagaraja,psychiatrist at Dhriti Clinic,says that there is a three-fold rise in the number of students and parents visiting her clinic over the last few days.If school children are afraid of writing exams,students from professional colleges,who wish to appear for all-India entrance tests and even apply to foreign universities fear losing a year, says Dr Poornima. Kalpana G Sringar of Indira Health Home says that during this exam season,she is seeing around 40 students a month being brought to her clinic.Further,Ranjana Haladkar of Roshni,a helpline (66202000/27848584) for the distressed,says she has seen a rise of 20 per cent in the number of calls and visitors this examination season.We are getting calls from Intermediate students who are in dilemma whether they would be writing exams or not, says Ranjana.
Psychiatrists say that very few academic institutions are doing enough to aid their students in dealing with this issue.According to NCRB 2008 statistics,Andhra Pradesh tops in the students suicide rate in the southern states with 481 deaths,followed by Karnataka (455),Kerala (286) and Tamil Nadu (258).Ranjana says that a depressed student may exhibit symptoms such as self-harm,low self-esteem,anti-social behaviour,alcohol or drug abuse.
There is a need to make them realise that their situation is not permanent and there is hope for change, she says. Experts also suggest that schools and colleges need to provide easier access to mental health services and do more outreach programs on campus.Every student who has depression and anxiety issues does not show up at the counselling centre,they said.Psychiatrists are also noticing a new kind of behaviour problems among students.They say that school absenteeism is on the rise and parents in order to de-stress children are giving in to unreasonable demands.
Dos & Donts
Reach out to a close friend,relative,teacher or counsellor when anxious.
Do not indulge in a postmortem of a paper once its over.
Sleep for eight hours before the paper.
Eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
Avoid junk food.
If you are in distress, seek professional help
====================================
(source-toi)
It is understood that chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy visited New Delhi last week to discuss this issue.In the course of the meetings,Kiran Kumar told Congress president Sonia Gandhi and other bigwigs in the government and the party that a categorical announcement should be deferred at least until the completion of the budget session of the state assembly.Otherwise there are chances of the state government getting derailed, sources quoted Kiran as telling Sonia.The Srikrishna panel had suggested in its report that the Telangana Regional Council should be headed by an MLA from the region enjoying the rank and status of a cabinet minister in the state government.It will be constitutionally provided with funds and will have its own secretariat.The membership of the council should be restricted to MLAs/MLCs and the number would depend on the number of subjects it is handling and its work load.
The separate state votaries may argue that such councils are not of much use as they had proved earlier.One Telangana Regional Council functioned from 1958 to 1969 and in 2008,YSR constituted the Telangana Regional Development Board,both of which did not help the region much.The Srikrishna panel is of the view that the council proposed by it would be more effective as it would be enabled constitutionally and armed with funds. According to sources,the top bosses of the UPA government discussed the option of going with the fifth option as well,which the Srikrishna panel had graded as second-best.This option,of dividing the state into Telangana and Seemandhra with Hyderabad as the formers capital and new capital suggested for the latter region,is fraught with too many problems such as huge expenditure required for the construction of a new capital,backlash in the Seemandhra region as well as regional disputes over sharing of river waters and other natural assets.
The Centre,which is facing several demands for smaller states,is said to have concurred with the view that the sixth option would be useful in addressing regional aspirations elsewhere in the country as well.
================================
ALARMING RISE IN SUICIDE CASES -T-unrest playing havoc with young minds
In the last two days,an alarming six suicides were reported in Hyderabad, of which 4 involved students, including that of a 16-year-old Class X student B Radhika, a resident of Kukatpally, who committed suicide fearing poor performance in the board exams on Friday. Specialists,however,are not surprised with the spurt in these cases,who are reporting a 20-30% rise in such cases this year and attribute it to the T unrest.They note that this examination season they have seen a disturbing rise in the number of emotionally disturbed students,with many fearing the loss of an academic year owing to the uncertainty prevailing in the state.
Dr Poornima Nagaraja,psychiatrist at Dhriti Clinic,says that there is a three-fold rise in the number of students and parents visiting her clinic over the last few days.If school children are afraid of writing exams,students from professional colleges,who wish to appear for all-India entrance tests and even apply to foreign universities fear losing a year, says Dr Poornima. Kalpana G Sringar of Indira Health Home says that during this exam season,she is seeing around 40 students a month being brought to her clinic.Further,Ranjana Haladkar of Roshni,a helpline (66202000/27848584) for the distressed,says she has seen a rise of 20 per cent in the number of calls and visitors this examination season.We are getting calls from Intermediate students who are in dilemma whether they would be writing exams or not, says Ranjana.
Psychiatrists say that very few academic institutions are doing enough to aid their students in dealing with this issue.According to NCRB 2008 statistics,Andhra Pradesh tops in the students suicide rate in the southern states with 481 deaths,followed by Karnataka (455),Kerala (286) and Tamil Nadu (258).Ranjana says that a depressed student may exhibit symptoms such as self-harm,low self-esteem,anti-social behaviour,alcohol or drug abuse.
There is a need to make them realise that their situation is not permanent and there is hope for change, she says. Experts also suggest that schools and colleges need to provide easier access to mental health services and do more outreach programs on campus.Every student who has depression and anxiety issues does not show up at the counselling centre,they said.Psychiatrists are also noticing a new kind of behaviour problems among students.They say that school absenteeism is on the rise and parents in order to de-stress children are giving in to unreasonable demands.
Dos & Donts
Reach out to a close friend,relative,teacher or counsellor when anxious.
Do not indulge in a postmortem of a paper once its over.
Sleep for eight hours before the paper.
Eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
Avoid junk food.
If you are in distress, seek professional help
====================================
(source-toi)
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