Students suicide in India

Source-This post on Students suicide in India has been created based on the article “A cry for help, a call for reflection and action” published in “The Hindu” on 26 March 2024.

UPSC Syllabus-GS Paper 2 – Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context– According to “Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India 2022” report by NCRB, over 13,044 Indian students ended their lives 7.6% of the total suicide fatalities in that year.

The number of suicides (students) rose from 10,335 in 2019, to 12,526 in 2020, to 13,089 in 2021. Further, In Kota (the hub of tuition/coaching) alone ,15 students ended their lives in 2022.

What are the reasons for students’ suicides in India?

1) Education system-The lack of job opportunities, a limited number of seats in government institutions and the high fees charged in private institutions have all created a climate of intense competition. This imposes great pressure on the minds of students, and they are forced to take drastic steps.

Read more- Increasing cases of Student suicide in India-A detailed explanation

2) Financial Concerns: As per All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) report (2019-20), only 21.4% of colleges are under governmental administration, with 78.6% under private entities. Due to high tuition or coaching fees, many families are not able to provide their children with supplementary educational resources such as coaching and tuition. This lack of support places immense and intense pressure on students to succeed in examinations of various kinds. A lack of success then leads to tragedy.

3) Social and family expectations– Parental control, emotional detachment, and societal expectations contribute to the sidelining of a student’s individual interest. The inability to satisfy parental expectations can leave young individuals feeling humiliated, dejected, desperate, and harassed. This may force them to take wrong steps.

What are the steps taken by coaching industries in Kota to address this issue?

1) Hostels are now equipped with ‘anti-suicide features’ that include devices fixed to ceiling fans to prevent children from harming themselves.Further,there are iron grills across balconies and passage ways.

2) The local government has stopped all routine testing in coaching institutes for over two months as a temporary measure.

3) Hostel staff are being trained and prepared to deal with the welfare of their wards.  There is specialized training in mess administration, psychological support, behavioral counselling and an emphasis on overall student welfare.

4) The Kota police have pushed hostel wardens to become more proactive by endorsing campaigns such as “darwaze pe dastak (knock on door).

It is disturbing to see young students voicing their inner turmoil on social media.Thus,there is an urgent need for our social infrastructure to grow more supportive and accommodative and support these young lives.

Question for practice

What are the reasons for growing students’ suicide in India? What institutional me