A team of young cyclists which started on a mission to pedal their way from Hyderabad to Amaravati to spread awareness among youth against resorting to suicides, arrived here on Saturday.
The cyclists started at People’s Plaza on Necklace Road on December 13 and covered Hayathnagar, Choutuppal, Nakrekal, Kodad and Jaggaiahpet before touching Vijayawada.
Student suicides have rocked Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The alarming frequency of the suicides by stress-ridden students, especially in junior colleges, has triggered a serious concern among the governments and the people of the States alike.
Contributing their mite to reverse the trend, students belonging to the youth wings of Vijayawada Cycle Club and the A.P. Psychologists’ Federation pedalled a distance of 300 km to reach here. The boards fixed to their cycles displayed slogans against suicides. At every 50 km, they interacted with the local students and their parents, urging them to equip themselves with skills that will help them conquer all kinds of pressure.
The team comprised B. Sandeep Reddy from Hyderabad, V. Krishna from Kothagudem, K. Brahmaiah, Ch. Narendra Reddy and Vamsi Krishna from Guntur, T.V. Karthik from Nellore and Sravan Kumar, Sandeep Pallepu, P. Ashok Reddy, Sai Krishna and Chetan from Vijayawada.
Disturbing trend
“Unable to handle pressure from peers, parents and educational institutions, a large number of students are ending lives, which is indeed very disturbing. We want students to develop self-esteem in a manner that will help them overcome pressure. Death is not the answer to any problem, one must understand,” said Mr. Sravan Kumar, coordinator of the youth wing of the Vijayawada Cycle Association.
They visited the Satavahana College from where they came in a cycle rally to the SRR & CVR Government Degree College to be part of a meeting, attended by City Police Commissioner D. Gautam Sawang.
Police to help
Addressing the meeting, the CP urged the students to open up and share their problems with friends, parents or even the police department.
“We are here to serve the public. Whenever you face any problem, please bring it to us, we will do whatever it takes to solve it,” promised Mr. Sawang.
From Vijayawada, they headed to Guntur and from there they will head to Amaravati on Sunday.
“This is the first activity of a series of them planned as part of a sustained campaign to help students get the better of their problems,” said V. Satyanarayana, president of the Vijayawada Cycle Association.
