India’s silent epidemic: what is killing our students?

On October 22, a second-year master’s student from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi was found dead after allegedly taking his own life. On the same day, in a town in Telangana’s Khammam district, a first-year student ended her life in similarly tragic circumstances. Two days earlier, a Class 11 student of Motvada High School in Rajkot, Gujarat also died by suicide, reportedly due to overwhelming stress at school, while a 19-year-old college student in Bengaluru took the same extreme step after his family to argue.

September was no different. On September 27, the body of a 19-year-old woman studying computer science at Gitam University in Telangana was found dead in her hostel room. A day earlier, a postgraduate student of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad was found hanging in his room, reportedly succumbing to the relentless pressure of academic performance.

A few days earlier, on September 21, two more students – one from National Institute of Technology (NIT) Patna and the other from Jamui – died by suicide, one due to academic stress and the other after being scolded by his mother. However, perhaps the most disturbing of these incidents occurred on September 15, when a top NEET student from Delhi’s Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC), known for his academic brilliance, was found dead in his room.

These devastating events, each a story of young lives cut short in different corners of India, paint a haunting picture of the unspeakable crisis that has gripped the nation – a crisis in which students, overwhelmed by academic pressures, social isolation and personal struggles, increasingly find escape only in death. This crisis is not new, but the frequency and severity of these incidents have given the issue acute urgency. This reflects a glaring symptom of systemic failures in educational and social frameworks.

According to a report released in August by the IC3 Institute, student suicide rates are increasing at an alarming rate, outpacing overall national suicide trends. The report titled ‘Student Suicides: An Epidemic Swallowing India’ highlighted a 4 per cent annual increase in student suicides, double the national rate of 2 per cent.

Data provided by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) confirms this trend: student suicides increased from 6,654 in 2013 to 13,044 in 2022. In the same year, students accounted for 10% of all suicides, compared to 8% in 2020. High suicide rates are reported in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu due to educational pressures in the academic centers of these states. Students aged 15-29 are most affected, often facing greater pressures in terms of their studies, social life and mental health.

This disturbing trend is not just a matter of numbers; it reveals a deeper, more systemic problem. More than 98 student suicides were reported in higher education institutions such as IITs, NITs and IIMs between 2019 and 2023. IITs alone accounted for 39 of these deaths, with the highest number of cases reported at IIT Madras. In an environment conducive to intellectual development, students instead succumb to intense academic pressure, social isolation, and a host of other stressors that lead them to this tragic end.

India’s premier institutes, respected for their academic rigor, have inadvertently become pressure cookers where the strain of achieving success can become unbearable. Competition for places at these elite institutions is fierce, and the relentless pursuit of academic excellence leaves no room for failure. For example, nearly 200,000 students compete for 1,207 seats in the top 15 AIIMS every year. This intense competition creates enormous pressure, contributing to mental health problems. In many cases, students who manage to get into these prestigious institutions are drowning under the pressure to live up to the expectations placed on them by society, their families, and the institutions themselves.

Intense academic workload combined with inadequate mental health support creates a toxic environment. Internal surveys conducted by various student organizations of IITs reveal that over 61 percent of students at these institutes have identified academic stress as a major contributing factor to peer suicides. The situation is further aggravated by the lack of suitable jobs, which creates another layer of uncertainty and anxiety, especially among final-year students. In 2021-2022, formal employment in the sector was 5.3%. lower than in 2019-20, and 42 percent youth up to 25 years of age were unemployed. Financial stress, job market uncertainty and the burden of educational debt also contribute to this problem.

The problem does not only concern academic institutions. Family pressure plays a significant role in this crisis. In many Indian households, children are seen as carriers of their families’ hopes and aspirations. Failure to gain a place at a prestigious institution or lack of good academic performance is often seen as a personal failure and a disgrace to the family. This social mindset pushes many students into a state of despair when they do not meet these expectations. This relentless pursuit of success often leads students to view suicide as the only escape from the pressures they face.

The mental health crisis among students is further exacerbated by the lack of adequate mental health counseling and support in educational institutions. Although the Union government has initiated programs such as ‘Manodarpan’ to provide psychosocial support, these efforts have been largely inadequate. A UNICEF report found that only 41 percent of young people aged 15 to 24 in India felt comfortable seeking support for mental health issues, highlighting the deep-seated stigma around mental health issues.

The failure to effectively address mental health issues is clearly visible in institutions like IITs and NITs, where the student-to-counselor ratio is disproportionately low. Students are often left alone with their mental problems, which leads to tragic consequences. The IC3 Institute report highlighted the need for a more robust counseling infrastructure, stating that educational institutions must put the well-being of students first by providing ongoing and comprehensive mental health support.

The city of Kota in Rajasthan, known for its developed coaching industry, has gained fame as a hotbed of student suicides. In 2023, 29 student suicides were reported in the city, a grim reflection of the immense pressure students face while trying to clear competitive exams such as IIT-JEE (engineering) and NEET (medicine). Students, often as young as 14, are drawn to Kota from all over the country, burdened with the hope of achieving what is considered the ultimate goal: admission to a top engineering or medical university.

However, busy schedules, constant grading and a lack of a supportive social environment lead many students to feel isolated, anxious and depressed. In response to the crisis, the Rajasthan government has introduced stricter regulations for coaching centers, including mandating mental health workshops and providing better training to hostel wardens on how to identify and support students showing signs of distress.

The factors causing student suicide in India are diverse and complex. Academic pressure is the main issue, but it intersects with other elements such as financial stress, caste discrimination and bullying. Marginalized students, including students from lower castes or the LGBTQ+ community, often face additional challenges that exacerbate their mental health issues. Despite legal advances such as the decriminalization of homosexuality, social acceptance remains limited and many LGBTQ+ students experience bullying and harassment, leading to further isolation.

Economic factors also play a key role. Students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds often bear the additional burden of high loans taken out by their families to finance their education. For these students, the pressure to succeed comes not only from personal achievement, but also from financial survival.

The Union Budget 2024-25 has allocated 3.5% of GDP to education, of which 0.6% to higher education, with an aim to address some of these issues. But experts are calling for a better skills framework, mental health support and social care policies to ease the crisis. They suggest that institutions should incorporate mental health education into their curricula, making it part of everyday learning rather than a reactive measure.

Ganesh Kohli of the IC3 Movement advocates for reform of the competitive examination system, calling for a shift from high-stakes exams to more holistic assessments that assess a student’s overall abilities and interests. It emphasizes the importance of career guidance not only to guide students on their academic paths, but also to help them understand that there are many ways to achieve success and fulfillment beyond traditional careers in engineering and medicine.

The problem of student suicide in India cannot be solved overnight. This requires the concerted efforts of all stakeholders, including educational institutions, families and policy makers. There is an urgent need for reforms that create an environment in which students can thrive without the crushing weight of unrealistic expectations. Stories of young people lost should be a stark reminder of the need for urgent action. Without significant change, the crisis will only deepen and India will lose more of its brightest young minds to a preventable tragedy.