Marks Don’t Define Life, Says Sajjanar

Hyderabad: Hyderabad police commissioner VC Sajjanar, in a tweet to students and parents while the SSC results were declared in X, said that marks are not the final word in a student’s life and appealed to parents to remain calm and supportive.

He asked parents not to pressure children and said their “life and happiness are more important than marks,” while encouraging students to speak openly if they feel stressed.

“Parents should avoid comparing their children to others or using grades as a measure of their own worth,” he said, adding that constant pressure can do more harm than good.

He also urged students not to take extreme steps over marks and to reach out to family, teachers or helplines if they feel overwhelmed, saying “every setback has another chance, but life does not.”

That message appeared to be valid, with mental health helplines reporting fewer distress calls than expected on results day.

P. Jawaharlal Nehru, senior consultant psychologist at Tele-MANAS (Tele Mental Health Assistance and Inter-State Networking), said a team of five professionals, including two psychiatrists, three psychologists and a woman counselor, remained on standby till Wednesday. “We received about 25 calls throughout the day, but only about five were anxiety or stress related,” he said.

Most calls are about next steps rather than emotional distress, he said. “Students and parents were asking questions about supplementary exams, course selections and what to do next. This shows a change in how results are viewed,” he said.

Some parents called, worried about irregular grades. “One parent said that their child was scoring around 70 per cent in some subjects and above 90 per cent in others. We explained that this could actually make career decisions clearer,” he said, adding that parents were advised to focus on strengths rather than comparing scores.

Nehru said counselors also spoke to parents about giving space to children. “We told them to let the child grow in the areas he is good at, rather than seeing it as a setback,” he said.

He said that the team was relieved that the distress calls had decreased, but that they would continue to provide support. “We are on the hotline throughout the night and will be on alert tomorrow as well,” he said.

Officials said the number of calls could mean a gradual change and families may seek guidance out of panic on results day.