The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Kharagpur has established a facility to care for its students' emotional and physical well-being. This initiative is the first of its type among IITs across the country.
The Zen Lounge, which is essentially a yoga and meditation hall located within the institute's SNIG Girls Hostel, was recently inaugurated. According to the institute, the lounge is "dedicated to fostering mindfulness, well-being, and mental wellness for the students," The Hindu reports.
In a statement, IIT Kharagpur said that the lounge was able to be established “with the generous support of Viji Narayanan, a distinguished alumna of IIT Kharagpur who resided in the same girls’ hostel during her undergraduate years from 1986 to 1991.”
Narayanan, who currently resides in Ohio, the United States of America (USA), works as a Senior Tech Advisor at software services firm KBR.
“Her vision is to create a space for mindfulness which stems from her own transformative experiences at the institute and her understanding of the importance of mental well-being in academic and personal growth,” the statement continued.
During the inauguration of the lounge, Narayan said that IIT Kharagpur complemented academic rigour with personal growth for students and that the Zen Lounge reflected that idea.
"I hope it will offer all who walk through its doors a peaceful retreat and a chance to nurture both mind and body, balancing the pressures of academic life," she told the audience.
The institute stated that Zen Lounge aims to combine the best of both worlds — "Western lifestyle medicine with natural Vedic principles" — to promote preventative healthcare and comprehensive mental health assistance.
"It creates a transformative culture of holistic wellness to empower people to not just survive but thrive in all aspects of this world," according to the university.
