For a student struggling with anxiety, depression, or thoughts of self-harm, seeing a “counselling” section on a university website can mean little if they cannot find whom to contact, how to access help, or where to turn for specialist care. As academic competition intensifies, workloads and societal pressures weigh heavily on students. Dedicated mental-health frameworks are therefore an essential part of student support.
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 emphasises holistic education. Beyond cognitive abilities, it says education should nurture students’ social, emotional and ethical capacities and create inclusive environments where students feel welcomed and supported. Mental health and emotional well-being are integral to this vision. [2]
The UGC’s 2023 Guidelines for Promotion of Physical Fitness, Sports, Students’ Health, Welfare, Psychological and Emotional Well-being encourage safeguards against academic stress and supportive student networks. A separate Uniform Policy on Mental Health and Well-being for Higher Educational Institutions was circulated for stakeholder comments on 13 January 2026. This draft proposes dedicated centres, trained professionals, faculty mentoring, peer support, 24×7 helplines linked to Tele-MANAS, referral pathways and annual reporting through the MANAS-SETU portal. These remain draft proposals, not a final binding standard. [1, 3]
The draft’s staffing language is specific. Section 2.5 says one qualified mental-health professional may be considered for institutions with 100 or more students and one professional per 500 students may be considered. Sections 2.2(d) and 2.2(e) give examples of one faculty mentor per 500 students and one peer supporter per 100 students, respectively. These are draft recommendations, not ratios from the 2023 guidelines. [3]
Together, the 2023 guidance and 2026 draft frame student well-being as an institutional responsibility. The practical question is whether students can find support, reach a trained professional and access further care when needed.
Rajasthan: India’s Education Laboratory, But Is It Mentally Healthy?
Rajasthan’s education agenda includes efforts to expand access, develop digital education infrastructure and reform public education, although their reach and impact vary across institutions.
At the same time, Rajasthan reflects the intense academic competition found across Indian education. Kota, a major coaching hub, saw student numbers fall from the usual 2–2.5 lakh to around 85,000–1 lakh in 2024, according to industry stakeholders quoted by the press. These are estimates, not an official census. [6] Students travelling away from home to prepare for entrance examinations often face demanding schedules and high expectations, making mental-health support important alongside academic preparation.
Rajasthan’s 2026–27 budget announced Raj-MAMTA (Rajasthan Mental Awareness, Mentoring and Treatment for All), proposing a Centre of Excellence in Mental Health at Sawai Man Singh Medical College, district Mental Health Care Cells, counsellors at district hospitals and awareness campaigns in schools and colleges. [4] Tele-MANAS offers free 24-hour support at 14416 or 1-800-891-4416, and the UGC has asked institutions to publicise it. [5] Universities should make campus-to-care routes and referral options equally clear.
This raises an important question: how closely do Rajasthan universities’ publicly documented support arrangements align with the UGC’s 2023 guidance and the proposals in its 2026 draft?
To examine this, I audited ten institutions: the University of Rajasthan, Mohanlal Sukhadia University (MLSU), Rajasthan Technical University (RTU), University of Kota, Jai Narain Vyas University (JNVU), Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University (MDSU), JECRC University, Manipal University Jaipur, BITS Pilani’s Pilani campus and Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur (MNIT). The purposive sample covers state and private universities, a deemed-to-be university and an Institute of National Importance.
The audit reviewed official counselling, Dean of Students’ Welfare, health, grievance and student-support pages. Twelve indicators were used (Table 1), combining UGC-related provisions with practical access measures such as contact details, appointment instructions and website navigation. Clear evidence was marked Y, incomplete evidence P, and no public evidence N. The audit assesses website visibility, not service quality or undocumented internal practices.
The sample is limited to ten institutions and cannot represent every college or university in Rajasthan. Websites change, so the findings are a snapshot of public information, not a definitive assessment of every service operating on campus.
Table 1: The twelve indicators used in the audit
| No. | Indicator | Counted as present only when |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Counselling cell | The institution lists a formal student counselling cell or service. |
| 2 | Mental health / well-being centre | A dedicated mental-health or well-being unit is identified; general medical care alone does not qualify. |
| 3 | Named counsellor / psychologist | A qualified counsellor or psychologist is named and student access is verifiable; generic references are partial. |
| 4 | Student welfare cell (DSW) | A Dean of Students’ Welfare or equivalent body has a stated student-support role. |
| 5 | 24×7 helpline | A mental-health or crisis helpline is explicitly available 24/7 and a usable number is given. |
| 6 | Peer-support programme | A formal peer-support, peer-counselling or student-buddy programme is described. |
| 7 | Faculty mentor system | A documented faculty mentor or tutor system provides student guidance. |
| 8 | Mental health workshops / events | At least one identifiable mental-health, stress-management or well-being event is documented. |
| 9 | Appointment process | Clear appointment instructions are provided, such as a contact, booking form or walk-in process. |
| 10 | Contact details | A usable direct contact method for student mental-health support is published. |
| 11 | Tele-MANAS / external referral | Tele-MANAS or another external service is identified with access or referral instructions. |
| 12 | Ease of finding on website | Support is easy to find through a labelled link, menu or dedicated page. |
The audit presents a mixed picture (Table 2). Most institutions publicly acknowledge some form of counselling or student guidance. The University of Rajasthan offers counselling through its historic Students’ Advisory Bureau, while the University of Kota has a Placement and Counselling Cell under the Dean of Students’ Welfare.
Table 2: Audit results by university (Y = clearly documented on the official website; P = mentioned but incomplete; N = not found). Indicators 1 to 12 follow Table 1.
| University | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Rajasthan | Y | N | P | Y | N | N | N | P | N | Y | N | N |
| MLSU | Y | P | P | Y | N | N | N | Y | P | Y | N | P |
| RTU | N | N | N | Y | N | N | N | P | N | Y | N | P |
| University of Kota | Y | N | N | Y | N | N | N | P | N | Y | N | Y |
| JNVU | N | N | N | P | N | N | N | N | N | Y | N | N |
| MDSU | Y | Y | Y | Y | N | P | N | Y | P | Y | N | Y |
| JECRC University | Y | Y | Y | P | N | Y | P | Y | Y | Y | N | Y |
| Manipal University Jaipur | Y | P | Y | Y | N | N | Y | Y | P | Y | N | Y |
| BITS Pilani | Y | Y | Y | Y | N | P | Y | Y | P | Y | N | Y |
| MNIT Jaipur | N | P | N | Y | N | P | P | P | P | Y | N | P |
Seven of the ten institutions publicly document a counselling cell or service. That is a meaningful starting point, but a counselling label alone does not show whether a qualified professional is available, how to book an appointment or what happens when specialist or urgent care is needed.
Only four institutions clearly identify a counsellor or psychologist: MDSU, JECRC University, Manipal University Jaipur and BITS Pilani. Other universities refer to counselling without identifying qualified professionals or provide no publicly visible information about psychologists.
The 2026 draft proposes dedicated Mental Health and Well-being Centres. MDSU, JECRC University’s Mpower Cell and BITS Pilani’s M-Power service have identifiable mental-health pages or centres. Elsewhere, support is often described through broader welfare offices or departmental pages. Without a clear structure, students may struggle to understand what help is available and who is responsible. [3]
The clearest weaknesses emerge in crisis support. None of the ten websites documents a dedicated 24×7 mental-health helpline, and none clearly explains access to Tele-MANAS or another external referral pathway. The UGC has asked institutions to publicise Tele-MANAS, while the 2026 draft proposes linking institutional helplines to it. This finding concerns website visibility; it does not mean the national service is unavailable to students. [3, 5]
Universities’ student-welfare administration is more visible than comprehensive mental-health provision. Dedicated infrastructure, referral systems and crisis support remain fragmented.
The findings are not entirely pessimistic. Five institutions clearly document mental-health events or awareness activities, four mention them partially and one has no evidence in the reviewed material. MLSU, MDSU, JECRC University, Manipal University Jaipur and BITS Pilani describe workshops, awareness campaigns or wellness programmes. These are valuable preventive measures, but cannot substitute for professional support, clear appointment routes or crisis-response mechanisms.
Peer support and faculty mentoring are also weakly documented. JECRC’s Mpower Cell and BITS Pilani’s Youth Mental Health First Aid programme offer examples of preventive support, while Manipal University Jaipur documents its Teacher Guardian and Mentor-Mentee Policy. Similar systems are largely absent from the other institutions reviewed. These examples matter because students may be more willing to seek help when trusted peers or faculty can explain the first step, while trained professionals remain responsible for assessment and care. Peer programmes should therefore be supported by clear boundaries and referral procedures rather than treated as substitutes for counselling.
Website navigation varies. Dedicated pages at JECRC, BITS Pilani, MDSU, Manipal University Jaipur and the University of Kota provide clearer starting points. Information is more dispersed at the University of Rajasthan, MLSU, RTU and MNIT Jaipur; JNVU has no clearly labelled mental-health entry point in the reviewed material.
Across the sample, the weakest documented links concern the route from first contact to sustained care: named professionals, appointments, crisis response and referrals. A university may provide one function without clearly explaining the others.
Information should be treated as part of the service itself. A student-facing page should identify who provides support, how to request an appointment, what confidentiality means, when the service operates and what to do in an emergency. The same information should appear in handbooks, orientation materials and hostel noticeboards, not only on an administrative webpage.
A Rajasthan Campus Mental Health Compact, led by the state higher-education department with the health department, could establish common public-information and reporting expectations for state universities and private institutions within the state’s remit. An annual checklist could cover service leads, professional availability, appointments, helplines, Tele-MANAS and referral partners, with time-bound corrective plans where gaps remain. The state cannot simply compel central MNIT Jaipur or deemed-to-be BITS Pilani through this compact; their participation should be coordinated with each institution and the UGC’s own monitoring. District services could provide shared specialist support where campuses lack staff, while protecting student privacy. A shared template would also make comparisons between institutions easier for students and families, while annual public reporting could show whether gaps are being addressed rather than simply recorded. The compact should focus on minimum access and transparency standards, leaving institutions flexibility in how they deliver support.
Rajasthan’s educational ambitions should be matched by a clear commitment to student well-being. This audit cannot prove that undocumented services do not exist, but it shows students cannot reliably judge what is available from public information alone. Universities should make support easy to find, explain how to access it and connect campus services to crisis and referral options. A student should not have to navigate institutional bureaucracy to find the first step towards help.
References
Policy Documents
1. University Grants Commission. Guidelines for Promotion of Physical Fitness, Sports, Students’ Health, Welfare, Psychological and Emotional Well-being at Higher Educational Institutions (2023).
https://www.ugc.gov.in/KeyInitiative?ID=PMXFYjzmJehU3tphrwWQSA%3D%3D
2. Ministry of Education, Government of India. National Education Policy 2020.
https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf
3. University Grants Commission. Guidelines on Uniform Policy on Mental Health and Well-being for Higher Educational Institutions (circulated for stakeholder comments, 13 January 2026; draft).
https://www.ugc.gov.in/pdfnews/0632835_Uniform-Policy-on-Mental-Health-and-Well-Being-for-HEI.pdf
4. Government of Rajasthan. State Budget Speech 2026–27, Raj-MAMTA programme provisions.
https://finance.rajasthan.gov.in/docs/budget/statebudget/2026-2027/BudgetSpeech202627.pdf
5. University Grants Commission. Tele-MANAS advisory to higher educational institutions (2024).
https://www.ugc.gov.in/pdfnews/7918886_Student_Mental_Health.pdf
6. Business Standard/PTI. “Drop in number of students impact Kota’s coaching, hostel industry”, 8 December 2024.
Official University Websites Reviewed
7. University of Rajasthan, Students’ Advisory Bureau.
8. Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Student Helpline and Department of Psychology.
9. Rajasthan Technical University, Dean of Students’ Welfare and student-welfare pages.
https://www.rtu.ac.in/index/view_menudata.php?page=-Dean-Student-Welfare115
https://www.rtu.ac.in/index/view_menudata.php?page=Dear-Principal-Director124
10. University of Kota, Dean Students’ Welfare and Placement and Counselling Cell.
https://uok.ac.in/Office-of-the-Dean-Students-Welfare
https://uok.ac.in/Placement-and-Counselling-Cell
11. Jai Narain Vyas University, Student Grievance Portal.
https://erp.jnvuiums.in/GRV/GrvMain.aspx
12. Maharshi Dayanand Saraswati University, Mental Health and Well-being and Primary Health Centre.
https://mdsuajmer.ac.in/Mental-health-and-well-being
https://mdsuajmer.ac.in/Primary-Health-Centre
13. JECRC University, Mpower Cell and FAQ.
https://jecrcuniversity.edu.in/mpower-cell-on-jecrc-university/
https://jecrcuniversity.edu.in/faq/
14. Manipal University Jaipur, Student Welfare and counselling pages.
https://jaipur.manipal.edu/dsw-student-welfare.php
https://jaipur.manipal.edu/dsw-counselling.php
15. BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus, M-Power and Student Welfare Division.
https://www.bits-pilani.ac.in/pilani/medical-center/m-power
https://swd.bits-pilani.ac.in/SWD-Services.aspx
16. Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, Student Welfare pages.
https://www.mnit.ac.in/sw/people
