Academic stress, and family, personal and mental health issues, are among some of the reasons identified behind the cases of suicides among students at the country’s premier higher education institutions, the union ministry of education informed the Parliament on Wednesday.
Sixty one students of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), National Institutes of Technology (NITs) and Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) committed suicide between 2018-23.
The Ministry of Education data becomes even more significant, as it comes in the wake of three incidences of student suicides at IIT-Bombay and IIT-Madras in a month.
Minister of State for Education Subhas Sarkar said “The higher educational institutions take various steps, such as conducting workshops/seminars on happiness and wellness, regular yoga sessions and induction programmes.”
He added that the institutions also focus on extracurricular activities, including sports and cultural activities and assign one faculty adviser per 10 students to help with their academics and monitor their progress.
Speaking about the government’s plan to tackle the suicides, he said, there is a counseling system in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 for this purpose. In addition, opportunities have been carved for students’ extra-curricular activities such as participating in clubs, community service projects, sports, etc.
