Varsities should set up students counselling system: UGC - 

 University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked all central universities and higher education institutions to put a ‘counselling system’ in place to help students deal with problems of stress, anxiety and homesickness. UGC has said that higher education institutions should mandatorily put in place a broad-based ‘Students Counselling System’ for the effective management of problems and challenges faced by students.

This directive is part of  “Guidelines on Safety of Students on and off Campuses of Higher Educational Institutions”, which have been shared with all varsities by UGC, asking them to amend their ordinances and other relevant statutory provisions to ensure the directions are implemented in the best interests of students.

The UGC guidelines further say that it should be a unique, interactive and target-oriented system, involving students, teachers and parents, resolved to address common student concerns ranging from anxiety, stress, fear of change and failure to homesickness and a slew of academic worries.

Recently, UGC had asked universities will soon have their own police stations for quick handling of crisis and preventing untoward incidents on campus. In a set of guidelines framed for enhancing students’ safety and security on campuses, University Grants Commission (UGC) has said university police station can go a long way in “instilling” a sense of security amongst students and scare amongst “nuisance makers and petty criminals”.