A report has revealed at least 65 student suicides at India’s prestigious IITs between 2021 and 2025, highlighting a severe mental health crisis. Intense academic pressure, competition, and inadequate support are cited as key factors.
India’s prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) have been under scrutiny after data revealed that at least 65 students died by suicide between January 2021 and December 2025, a troubling trend that has reignited concerns about mental health, academic pressure, and institutional accountability at these elite engineering colleges.
The figures, compiled by a Global IIT Alumni Support Group, show that student suicides have occurred across multiple campuses, with some institutions such as IIT Kharagpur reporting disproportionately high numbers. Many of these tragedies take place around end-of-semester examinations, a period known for intense stress and competitive pressure.
The rising toll has prompted alumni and student advocates to call on IIT administrations and the central government to take responsibility for the systemic pressures that contribute to such deaths. They argue that simplistic attributions to personal issues downplay underlying causes such as academic stress, extreme competition, social isolation, inadequate support systems, and even discrimination.
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Students and alumni alike emphasise that these deaths are not isolated incidents but part of a deeper mental health crisis within high-pressure academic environments. Critics point to rigid evaluation systems, a culture that equates academic failure with personal failure, and the absence of effective, accessible counselling services. According to experts, many students do not seek help due to stigma, privacy concerns, and mistrust of existing campus support structures.
The crisis has manifested tragically at multiple IITs, including a recent case at IIT Kanpur, where a 25-year-old PhD scholar reportedly struggling with anxiety jumped from a hostel building, marking one of several suicides at the campus in a short span. Students have directly criticised what they describe as institutional apathy and inadequate mental health infrastructure, noting that timely counselling was unavailable at key moments.
Beyond individual campuses, the issue has attracted attention from legal authorities. The Supreme Court of India has earlier flagged the alarming trend of student suicides across top institutions and set up panels to investigate root causes and recommend preventive measures, emphasising the need for immediate institutional reforms.
Calls for accountability have included demands for standardized reporting norms, inclusion of student well-being indicators in national performance frameworks, and a shift toward holistic education that balances academic rigor with emotional support systems. Advocates stress that embedding robust mental health care into campus life — including accessible counsellors, early intervention systems, and de-stigmatization efforts — is critical to reversing the trend.
With the looming specter of 65 lives lost and possibly many more unreported struggles, alumni voices underscore a growing recognition within and outside academia that elite educational institutions must do more than celebrate intellectual excellence — they must ensure the well-being and safety of their students.
