Opinion ‘Campus Mothers’ at IIT-Kharagpur: Mental-health support must not come dressed in stereotypes

An unrelenting academic culture, the isolation of hyper-competitive environments and a system fuelled by ambition that has little room for outliers — across India’s premier institutes of higher education, the mental-health crisis has become a tragic thread in a widening pattern of student distress. Against this backdrop, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur’s proposal to launch a “Campus Mothers” initiative — appointing female mentors from among the women residing on campus, both faculty and non-faculty, to provide informal emotional support to students — presents itself as a compassionate intervention. However, its framing — the troubling tendency to offload responsibility and caregiving on women — raises concerns about gender stereotyping and carries the risk of substituting deeper, more difficult structural reforms with symbolic gestures.

To its credit, IIT-Kharagpur’s proposal is part of a growing acknowledgement within elite institutions that student wellbeing can no longer be treated as an afterthought. In 2025 alone, Kharagpur has reported three student suicides. In May, a 10-member committee was set up for a detailed intervention plan; efforts are under way to introduce AI-based support tools; and moves to ease attendance norms and reduce academic pressure have shown early promise. These efforts must be expanded, not eclipsed by a programme that conflates care with maternal instinct. By designating only women to serve as “campus mothers”, it inadvertently thrusts a disproportionate emotional burden on women on campus, often already balancing their own personal and professional challenges. It also reduces complex emotional labour to a function of gender. There are other conceptual deficits. The initiative has been conceived as an additional layer of social intervention to buttress formal mental-health services. But mental-health assistance is not a matter of intuition or goodwill. Rooted in the complications of gender, class, caste, language, and identity, it requires professional training, ethical grounding, and clear institutional frameworks to help students navigate systemic inequalities. Even with the best intention, informal mentorship can slide into moralising, paternalism, or breaches of trust. What the fraught journey of young adults trying to come to terms with their distress needs is a safe, confidential space to unpack their traumas.

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This is not to say that community support within campuses is unimportant. Meaningful engagement can build trust and a sense of belonging, especially for first-generation learners venturing out into the world on their own. A more inclusive and thoughtful model that invites faculty, staff and residents of all genders to serve as trained “campus mentors”, for instance, would reflect the span of empathy, equality, and shared responsibility. It would ensure that care does not come sheathed in stereotypes and send out the message that nurturance is not a woman’s job alone; that kindness, and emotional intelligence are universal values, not gendered traits. IIT-Kharagpur has begun the conversation. It must now deepen it.