India saw a disturbing spike in suicides among students in 2024, with 14,488 cases making it to the records, marking a 4.3% surge from 13,892 in 2023, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2024 report revealed. The rise came even as the country’s overall suicide rate saw a marginal dip of 0.4%, dropping from 171,418 in 2023 to 170,746 in 2024. The divergence has put a growing and disproportionate crisis among students in focus.

Student suicides rise by 62.2% over a decade

According to official figures, student suicides have soared sharply by 62.2% over the past decade. In comparison, the number of overall suicides rose by 27.8%. Notably, the statistics reveal that in the last five years alone, student suicides saw an uptick of 15.7%, outpacing the 11.6% increase in overall suicides since 2020. Between 2015 and 2024, a whopping 115,850 students ended lives by suicide across India.

Experts flag mental health emergency

Mental health professionals commented on the steep spike, warning that the rising numbers reflect a deepening crisis driven by numerous stressors, including academic pressure, social expectations and inadequacy of support systems. Senior psychiatrist at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences, Dr Om Prakash said many cases stem from untreated psychological conditions.

He noted, “While exam pressure and competition are visible triggers, a huge number of students suffer from undiagnosed depression, anxiety or other forms of emotional distress.” Ganesh Kohli, founder of the Mumbai-based IC3 Movement called for integrating mental health awareness into mainstream education, He underscored the role of teachers and parents in identifying early warning signs and fostering safe environments for students.

Demographic and state-wise breakdown

Among the 14,488 student suicides in 2024, 7,669 were males while 6,819 were female. Maharashtra took the top spot at 13.2%, followed by Uttar Pradesh (20.9%), Madhya Pradesh (10%) and Tamil Nadu (8.9%). A significant proportion of students who resigned to their fate were educated up to Class 10 (25.6%), followed by those at middle school level (17.7%) and higher secondary (18.3%). The ones who graduated or pursued higher education accounted for 5.6% of the cases.

What's the leading cause behind suicides among students?

The NCRB 2024 report revealed that family-related issues emerged as the key cause behind the suicides, accounting for 33.5% of the cases, followed by illness (17.9%) and substance abuse (7.6%). It is noteworthy that failure in exams contributed to only 1.2% of cases.