Panaji, Oct 16 (IANS): A day after a 16-year-old Class X student committed suicide in North Goa's Sattari sub-district, reportedly after his father was unable to repair a smartphone for her online education, Leader of Opposition in Goa Assembly Digambar Kamat urged the BJP-led coalition government in the state to up its efforts to commission an existing intranet network to facilitate online studies.

"Shocked to hear that with no money to repair a mobile, an SSC student ended his life in Sattari. My condolences to his family. I once again appeal to the Chief Minister to immediately make the optic fibre cable intranet facility available, which will resolve all issues of online education," Kamat said in a statement issued late on Friday.

The 16-year-old student was found dead in North Goa on Thursday and the post-mortem has confirmed suicide.

Police enquiries later revealed that the deceased teenager had repeatedly requested his father, a bus driver, to repair his smartphone so that he could attend online classes. The father had been unable to repair the phone because of substantial reduction in his wages as a bus driver due to the pandemic, the police said.

Kamat said that by commissioning intranet via optic fibre cable, students would be able to avail online education programmes directly in their television sets and do away with the need for additional smart phones.

"Commissioning of the intranet facility through optic fibre cable network will also help in providing various options to the students as well as the teachers with regard to gadgets. The OFC can be connected to a television set, computer or laptop and the strength of the signal is extremely good which ensures uninterrupted connectivity," Kamat said.