Factory reset

Despite cases of suicide and exorbitant fees, students still prefer Kota. But the numbers are dipping

- REYA MEHROTRA

WHAT HAPPENS IN Kota no longer stays in Kota. There’s even a show about it.

In a scene in the recently released third season of Kota Factory, actor Tillotama Shome, who plays a chemistry teacher, says, “Aapko pata toh hai Kota factory ban chuka hai. Jahan pehle dheere-dheere taraash kar bacchon ko kabil banaya jata tha, wahan mass production lag gaya hain [You must be aware that Kota has turned into a factory now. Where once children were nurtured and there was a gradual progression of their skills, now there is mass production].” This dialogue mirrors a dark reality.

It has been nearly impossible to miss what has been happening in Kota, the coaching capital of the country, unless one is living under a rock. The ‘technical glitch’ leading to this year’s National Eligibility-Cum-Entrance Test (NEET) controversy has lifted the veil on the systemic issues and loopholes in the Indian examination process, especially in the medical and engineering fields. The protests that have erupted all over the country post the fiasco are evidence of the shared discontent among aspirants. This aside, the increasing number of student suicides in Kota, especially of those from financially weak backgrounds, year after year has taken the sheen off Kota’s success streak. The exorbitant fees charged by coaching centres have put middle class and lower middle class families under severe pressure. Yet, the city sees lakhs of incoming aspirants every year.