Supreme Court issues 15-point guidelines to protect young lives as exam stress and societal pressure continue to claim students across India.
WITH THE ACUTE pressure of parental expectations and intense scrutiny by society, incidents of student suicides have been increasing sharply in the country. There are frequent media reports of students—sometimes even school children and those appearing for competitive examinations—attempting or committing suicide.
This worrisome trend reflects the poor attention paid to the mental health of students by the government, educational institutions, and coaching centres. The weight of parental expectations and the societal fear of failure can push students to mental breaking points, often with devastating consequences.
This distressing reality is reflected in the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data for 2022, the latest such data released. It pointed out that of the 1.80 lakh cases of suicide reported that year, 13,044 were students, with 2,248 linked to examination failures. This marked a significant rise from 5,425 student suicides in 2001.
Data analysed by a voluntary organisation showed that while overall suicide numbers increased by 2 per cent annually, student suicide cases surged by 4 per cent. Yet, the actual numbers may be much higher, given the tendency to underreport suicides due to societal stigma.
Various governments have taken some half-hearted measures to curb this tendency, but the efforts are far from adequate. For instance, the Rajasthan government issued guidelines for coaching academies in the state, particularly in Kota, where 15 to 20 students have been committing suicide annually.
The central government, too, introduced guidelines for the prevention of student suicides in schools under the programme *UMMEED*. These include chapters on identifying suicidal tendencies and preventing attempts. However, little attention has been paid to the implementation of such guidelines.
Taking serious note of the sharply rising number of student suicides, the Supreme Court has issued landmark 15-point guidelines for educational institutions and coaching academies and has asked the government to enact legislation to ensure effective steps are taken to save precious lives.
While adjudicating a specific case of a 17-year-old student’s unnatural death in Visakhapatnam, a division bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta issued comprehensive interim guidelines to safeguard the mental health of students across educational institutions.
The bench observed that there was a “legislative and regulatory vacuum” in the country with respect to a “unified, enforceable framework for suicide prevention in educational institutions, coaching centres, and student-centric environments.”
It added: “The continued loss of young lives, often due to preventable causes rooted in unattended psychological distress, academic overburden, social stigma, and institutional insensitivity, reflects a systemic failure that cannot be ignored.”
The bench noted that these measures would remain in force and be binding until appropriate legislation or regulatory frameworks are enacted by the competent authority.
The judges said that all educational institutions with 100 or more enrolled students should appoint or engage at least one qualified counsellor, psychologist, or social worker with demonstrated expertise in child and adolescent mental health. “Institutions with fewer students shall establish formal referral linkages with external mental health professionals.”
The guidelines also include a provision that all residential institutions must install tamper-proof ceiling fans or equivalent safety devices and restrict access to rooftops, balconies, and other high-risk areas to deter impulsive acts of self-harm. Among other directives, institutions have been asked to create an effective grievance redressal mechanism and to refrain from segregating students into batches based on academic performance.
The court remarked that education has now been reduced to a “high-stakes race,” where students face relentless performance metrics, societal expectations, and institutional rigidity, often at the cost of their mental well-being. “In this paradigm, life becomes a series of tests, and failure is seen not as a part of growth but as a devastating end,” the bench added.
While the guidelines are laudable, India’s education sector is vast and diverse, making their implementation a Herculean task. Another challenge is the acute shortage of qualified psychologists and counsellors in the country.
India has only 0.3 psychiatrists per one lakh people, according to WHO estimates, whereas most families in Western countries have access to family counsellors. In addition, the stigma associated with mental health in India remains a deterrent.
The success of these guidelines will ultimately depend on robust enforcement, adequate funding, and widespread public awareness campaigns. 
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Vipin Pubby
The author, a freelance journalist, is a former Resident Editor of Indian Express, Chandigarh, and reported on the political developments in Jammu and Kashmir, North-Eastern India, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab in his long, illustrious career.
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