The growing number of student suicides is a matter of collective shame for the country. The entire education ecosystem that puts a premium on success and shuts the doors on alternative career avenues is to be blamed for the sorry state of affairs. The recent death of an 18-year-old student in Kota, the hub for notorious coaching factories in Rajasthan, may just, in a matter of time, become part of cold statistics of student suicides in the country. In the name of preparing students for competitive exams, coaching institutes subject them to a gruelling routine that many young people may not be able to cope with. Some crack under pressure. Kota is dotted with mushrooming coaching centres that cram students in pigeonhole-like classrooms from dawn to dusk, grooming them for India’s highly competitive exams for engineering and medical colleges. Here in Arunachal Pradesh too students face a lot of pressure. The growing competition is taking toll on the students. There is a need for mental health awareness too.
The number of student suicides is rising in the country and in the state too. Successive governments have failed to take corrective steps to arrest the ominous trend and rein in the coaching factories. A shocking apathy marks the general reaction of society. No modern society should treat the deaths of young people as collateral damage. If one has to understand the gravity of the problem of student pressure in India, one needs to look at the numbers pertaining to the IIT-JEE, arguably one of the toughest entrance examinations in the world. Only 0.04% of the total candidates who take the test actually end up getting admission. While the media highlights the success stories of only those who make it to these elite institutions, the struggles and miseries of thousands of aspirants remain untold and unaddressed.