THE recent tragedy of a student who stabbed his university professor and then fell to his death should prompt a rethink on the adequacy of existing safety measures. This is to pre-empt the possibility of troubled students wreaking violence on others.

It must be acknowledged that while the universities have student counselling schemes, no scheme can guarantee that such situations will not occur.

Dealing with troubled students must be a total community effort. It is not enough to attend to victims after the event. Every member of the student and academic population has a role to play in preventing loss of life.

The community must be on the alert. Students and staff, not just counsellors, must look out for one another. If possible, circles should be formed for this purpose, where students monitor other circle members if they miss lectures, slip in their grades or are suddenly aloof. More important, any member of the circle should contact the authorities if necessary.

I hope a whistle-blower system can be instituted. If everyone agrees on the need for such a scheme, we may do better in rescuing troubled students before it is too late.

Murali Sharma

This article was first published in The Straits Times.