Depression: 7 student suicides forcing India to think

 

India is a young nation with a considerably large size of below the age of 25. According to a UN report titled ‘The power of 1.8 billion’ released in 2014, India has the largest youth population in the world. As per this report, 28 percent of India is between age 10 to age 24. According to 2011 census data, about 41 percent of India’s population is below 20 years old.  

 

The UN report of the youth population also states that the developing nations having large size youth population experiences better economic growth, provided the country invests in their education, health, and also protects their rights. 

 

If India’s population data and the UN report’s findings are put together, then India is a powerful nation with incredible future potential due to its young population. However, the reality is a far cry from what the situation should ideally be. 

 

The recent growing incidents of young students committing suicide for various reasons are a reflection of the socio-economic condition of India that needs to change. According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 2015 data one students commit suicide every one hour. 

 

Depression or mental health is the leading cause of death among the young of this nation. Family pressure, exam pressure, discrimination, unfair practices by institutions, peer pressure, societal pressure, are some of the prominent causes that haunt the youth of India ultimately forcing them into taking their own lives. 

 

Below are the recent suicides that highlight specific problems faced by the youth in India and forcing the nation to take notice: 

 

 

1. Rohith Vemula: The suicide of the 26-year-old Ph.D. scholar of Hyderabad University shocked many and brought the Dalit debate to the foreground. Sadly, this is not the first incident when Dalit student committed suicide due to alleged discriminatory treatment by an academic institution. 

 

 

2. Jishnu Prannoy: The 18-year-old computer science student, Jishnu’s suicide triggered sharp reaction in Kerala. There are allegations of physical and mental torture by the college authorities that forced the young boy to take his own life. 

 

 

3. Arjun Bhardwaj: A 24-year-old economics student jumped from the 19th floor of a hotel in Mumbai and plunged to his death. He reportedly left nine suicide notes and was disturbed and depressed.

 

4. Dara J Bhim Raju: The Dalit B Tech student of IIT- BHU killed himself allegedly over poor performance in semester exams. The student did not leave any note and reason of his death is yet to be ascertained. 

 

 

5. J Muthukrishnan: A 27-year-old research scholar in Jawaharlal Nehru University killed himself without leaving behind any note. The police allegedly suspect from his Facebook posts and statement by his friends that he was unwell since two weeks prior to his suicide.

 

6. Kota and suicide: Kota has become the battleground of medical and engineering aspirants who flock into this city every year to prepare in some reputed coaching institutions. 

 

The study schedule of teenage students is insane here, and the pressure is incredible on the student. This has made the city the suicide destination for many students. Fear of failure has made many young, bright minds take their own life here. 

 

In fact, the increasing number of suicide by hanging has forced Kota Hostel Association to come with a siren sensor and a spring device for ceiling fans to detect and alert anything above 20 kg hanging from it.

 

7. Board exams and suicide: It is a sad state of affair when the society needs to urge school students to not commit suicide due to exam-related stress. The whole purpose of education that is supposed to empower an individual which is plainly defeated when education weakens the mental health of students. 

 

The Lok Sabha recently passed the Mental Healthcare Bill 2016 which is a landmark step towards better awareness and breaking the taboo associated with mental health in India.