One Student Commits Suicide Every Hour in India, New Data Shows

The crisis of Indian students committing suicide is only worsening every year, the latest data released by the government shows.

More than 26,000 students have killed themselves in the last three years, a report by the Ministry of Home Affairs shows. In 2016, as many as 9,474 Indian students committed suicide – that’s at least one student every hour.

The report did not categorise different causes, but mentioned that 2403, 2646 and 2413 suicides were committed due to failed examinations, between 2014 and 2016.

The state-wise breakup of student suicides shows that the maximum number (1,350) of these cases are reported from Maharashtra, followed by West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The crisis in Maharashtra was highlighted after a student in the state’s capital Mumbai livestreamed on Facebook before jumping off a hotel balcony.

While Maharashtra was in the lead, West Bengal saw a nearly two-fold increase in student suicides in the last two years.

The query was put forward in the Lok Sabha by Kapil Moreshwar Patil, an MP from Bhiwandi, who sought to know the number of suicides among medical students. The MoS for Home Affairs, Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, replied that these records are “not maintained centrally.”

The Ministry of Home Affairs further maintained that it has implemented suicide prevention services, workplace stress management, life skills training and counseling in schools and colleges.

While numerous cases of student suicide reveal that they were due to exam pressure, poor performance or ragging, India has also seen cases where harassment, fear of unemployment and caste discrimination as causes behind students ending their lives.

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