Margao: South Goa collector Egna Cleetus on Friday chaired a meeting of the district-level monitoring committee to address concerns over student mental health and safety in educational institutions across the district.

The meeting came just a day after chief minister Pramod Sawant announced the formation of an inquiry committee following the fifth student death at BITS Pilani Goa campus in the past 10 months.

The committee will coordinate with schools, colleges, universities, and private coaching centres across the district to implement mental health support systems, it was informed. The committee has outlined certain focus areas.

All educational institutions will be required to adopt uniform mental health policies. Institutions must either appoint dedicated counsellors or establish clear referral linkages to them.

The meeting, held in the presence of additional collector-II Ramesh Gaonkar and director of higher education Bhushan Savoikar, was attended by officials from various departments, including social welfare, women and child development, health services, law, and technical education, among others.

To create safer campus environments, confidential reporting and redressal systems will be established to combat ragging and harassment. Suicide helplines will be prominently displayed across all educational facilities to provide immediate access to help during crisis situations.

Regular compliance reports will be submitted to state govt for effective implementation and monitoring. The committee will meet at regular intervals to review progress.

All educational institutions in the South Goa district have been directed to extend full cooperation to ensure timely and effective implementation of Supreme Court’s guidelines on student safety and mental health.