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Why Kota sucks?
Abha Gupta. Dated: 5/21/2019 11:11:09 AM
Kota has become synonym for stress, pressure, depression and suicide.
ER ABHA GUPTA(BE(GCET), ME (PANJAB UNIVERSITY))
Kota became educational hub, when the students started getting selected in IITs in huge numbers. The sharp business minds thought why not to take advantage and started running coaching centres, promising 100% success rate at whooping high rates.
Kota is a bustling town some 250 km south of Rajasthan capital Jaipur. Over the past couple of decades the town has changed from an industrial power house to an educational hub.
Every year lakhs of students from across the country come to Kota to enroll in the multitude of coaching institutes to crack the entrance exams to engineering and medical colleges.
Many houses, apartments, housing societies, eateries and restaurants have cropped up to cater to the needs of the students.
For many students it is the first time they have stepped outside their home towns, living away from family. At times the surroundings can feel alien. The emotional pressure starts to build up from the beginning.
Many time the pressure from parents is very high. Most of the Indian parents do ‘emotional atayachar’ saying, “we are spending so much on you so that you clear IIT, but if you fail we will be penny less”, these kinds of talks add a heavy pressure on the young minds, as a result many succumb to the pressure.
The coaching centres do not deny any student who enters, and there are two reasons, one and foremost is business and the other one is that no parent wants to listen that their child is not capable of IIT.
There is no surprise that one can see children as young as 13 years being send way in advance to prepare for IITs even when they are in class VII.
The students coming to Kota are from different backgrounds. From rich and above average families, to middle class households. When they study together and results are displayed, the peer pressure is tough to handle for the low background under-performing students.
Perks to Intelligent students – Top faculties, AC classes, separate vehicles, more focus on them. These are the students who will bring more business to coaching institute next year. It affects the psychology of rest of the students who gets below average faculties and less attention.
This partiality in coaching have a negative effect on some students minds.
What is the expenditure on an average in Kota:
1. Coaching fees ranges from Rs 60,000 to Rs 1,30,000 depending upon the institute and their respective discounts.
2. Mess charges ranges from Rs 1,500 per month to Rs 5,000. Therefore, Yearly costs ranges between Rs 18,000 to Rs 60,000.
3. Hostel/ PG rent ranges from Rs 4,000 to Rs 15,000 per month. Therefore, yearly cost ranges between Rs 48,000 to Rs 1,80,000.
Variable expenses
1. Transportation costs can vary a lot. If you live nearby it will be Rs 0 or you can buy a bicycle costing between Rs 2000 and Rs 5000.
2. Other day to day household items can cost anything between Rs 1,000 to Rs 12,000.
3. Entertainment cost(movies, cafes, restaurants, etc can also vary from Rs 0 to Rs 1,00,000.
Total cost
Adding the above fixed and variable costs you have to pay a minimum amount of (60,000 + 18,000 + 48,000 + 0 + 1,000 + 0 = ) Rs 1,27,000.
And a maximum amount, if you want to live lavishly, can cost around (1,30,000 + 60,000 + 1,80,000 + 5,000 + 12,000 + 1,00,000 = ) Rs 4,87,000.
So the annual expense for living and studying in Kota can range from Rs 1,27,000 to Rs 4,87,000.
This expenditure can put extra pressure on students to give result at any cost.
Most of the students taking coaching enroll in dummy schools. These dummy schools are money minting machines. There is no need to go to school, just enroll yourself, and go to school during tests and examinations. That’s it. There are hundreds of such schools in Kota.
So before sending your child to Kota, make sure he/she is intelligent enough and does not take enough pressure on mind. Make sure you tell them, ” You try your level best, if you succeed then good, but of you don’t, we will explore other options”.
ALL THE BEST!!!