A disturbing surge in suicides among schoolchildren and young students has shaken the nation, with experts describing it as a “silent mental health epidemic” driven by intense academic pressure, unrealistic parental expectations, social media influence, bullying, and a severe lack of emotional support systems. According to the latest data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), as many as 13,900 students took their own lives in 2023 alone, marking a steady and alarming increase in recent years.

Recent tragic incidents have brought the crisis into sharp focus. In one heart-wrenching case, a student from St. Columba’s School in Delhi jumped in front of a moving metro train, allegedly after facing persistent harassment and bullying from teachers. The boy, who was passionate about dancing rather than academics, was reportedly pushed by a teacher and mocked for his dance skills. His parents claim the school environment became unbearable for him. Just days earlier, a Class 10 girl in Telangana died by suicide by jumping from the fifth floor of a building after being scolded by her parents over poor marks.

Experts from various walks of life stressed that the problem is multi-layered and cannot be attributed to a single cause. A career counsellor working extensively with Class 11 and 12 students, revealed that many adolescents feel overwhelming guilt during the college application process. She opined that students struggle to balance academics with the social pressure of looking a certain way, being at certain places, and getting into certain colleges. At the end of it, they feel neither happy nor satisfied.

A former principal and theatre activist pointed out that pressure often begins as early as nursery admissions. She observed that parents come asking if their three-year-old will get into IIT or whether we teach horse riding and cricket. This obsession, she stressed, with turning every child into an ‘achiever’ started far too early. She also called social media “an absolute devil” for young minds, projecting filtered, unrealistic lives that breed loneliness and low self-worth.

Decline in teaching quality and empathy

A veteran educator who taught at Delhi Public School RK Puram for 18 years, highlighted a worrying decline in the quality and passion of teachers. She said that teaching is no longer seen as a respected profession. She opined that many enter it as a stop-gap arrangement and principals are often appointed based on seniority rather than leadership or emotional intelligence. She stressed the urgent need for psychological screening of teachers and school leaders, adding that personal biases — including gender stereotypes about boys dancing — have no place in classrooms.

A child and adolescent psychotherapist emphasised the breakdown of adult-child engagement. She noted that when adults are dismissive or unavailable, children turn to the online world where the quality of interaction is vastly different and often harmful. “Even chatbots can seem more empathetic than busy or judgmental adults .” she said. Also, it was more or less agreed that many modern parents, in an attempt to be “friends” with their children, have blurred crucial boundaries. 

 The principal gave an example- “We ask 14-year-olds where they want to go on holiday or what restaurant they prefer. They are not taught how to hear ‘no’. This, combined with the collapse of joint-family support systems, leaves children emotionally fragile and unprepared for real-world setbacks.The teacher added that schools now avoid the word “fail”, replacing red marks and remedial classes with euphemisms. She expressed her sadness that we are not preparing children for a world where failure is part of life.  She mentioned how the focus is always on being the best, never on coping with not being the best despite hard work.

What is being called for are urgent systemic changes: better training and screening of teachers, mandatory mental health education, open communication channels at home and school, regulation of social media impact on minors, and a cultural shift away from equating academic scores with a child’s worth. As one expert poignantly summed up: “These are young lives being lost because they feel they have no safe space to simply be themselves. If we don’t act collectively — as parents, educators, and society — we will keep losing our children.”