One of India’s top engineering schools has restricted Internet access in its hostels*, saying addiction to surfing, gaming and blogging was affecting students’ performance, making them reclusive* and even suicidal.*

Authorities at the elite Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Mumbai said students had stopped socializing and many were late for morning classes or slept through them.

“Now, a student doesn’t even know who lives two doors away from him because he is so busy on the Internet,” said Prakash Gopalan, dean of student affairs.

“The old hostel culture of camaraderie* and socializing among students is gone. This is not healthy in our opinion.” IIT in Mumbai, with about 5,000 students, is one of seven IITs across India, which are considered to be among the finest engineering schools in the world. They are also a talent pool for global technology giants.

But their exacting curriculum, tough competition and reclusive campus lifestyle have taken their toll on students.

Depressive* and disfunctional* lifestyles are known to be common among IIT students, and at least nine have committed suicide in the past five years. Students have unlimited free Internet access in their hostel rooms to help them in their studies, but many also use it to surf, chat, download movies and music, blog and for gaming.

(SD-Agencies)

印度一家一流工科院校日前颁布了一项限制学生宿舍上网的规定，该学校称，学生整日沉迷于上网、玩电脑游戏和写博客，影响了他们的学习成绩，并助长了他们内心的孤独感和自杀倾向。

这所位于孟买的印度工学院的官员们称，学生们不愿参加社交活动，很多人要么早上上课迟到，要么干脆在课堂上睡觉。

学生处处长普拉卡什·格帕兰说：“现在，有的学生忙于上网，甚至不知道住在隔壁的同学是谁。”

“互助友爱的宿舍文化已经一去不复返了。我们认为，这是个不健康的趋势。” 拥有5000名学生的印度孟买工学院是印度七大工学院之一，这七所工学院国际知名，同时也是全球顶尖科技集团的人才库。

但高难度的课程、激烈的竞争和“与世隔绝”式的校园生活严重影响了这些学生的身心健康。 沉闷、不正常的生活方式在印度工学院是一种普遍现象，在过去五年中，印度工学院至少有九名学生自杀。

【宿舍, 客栈】

*hostel

a supervised, inexpensive lodging place for travelers, especially young travelers

【隐居的】

*reclusive

Seeking or preferring isolation

【自杀的】

*suicidal

causing, intending, or relating to death, a suicidal act; suicidal impulses

【友情】

*camaraderie

goodwill and lighthearted rapport between or among friends; comradeship

【压抑的】

*depressive

of or relating to psychologically low spirit

【失去功能的】

*disfunctional

abnormal, especially of a bodily system or social group