It’s just a little stress. All greater things are hard. You must perform well, there’s a lot at stake. You need to focus. No pain no gain, right!…right?
A recent tragedy of IIT Kharagpur shook us to face the reality of the mental distress that surrounds Indian students. 21 year old K Kiran Chandra, a well performing fourth year student of electrical engineering in the institute hanged himself on the night of 17th of October. His father stated that Kiran was stressed about his project. As depressing as this incident was, Kiran wasn’t the only IITian losing hope to live and choosing the path of self harm. According to an article published by Niharika Sharma in March 2023, around 61 suicides have been reported over the past five years among elite Indian educational institutes out of which almost 50% were from IITs.
What causes the students to take such extreme measures? What does their mind suffer through that they find themselves quitting on life? Why is there so much stress and pressure surrounding them?
The obsessiveness of Indian population with the engineering and medical professions has been long existent. Every year around 11 lakh students sit for the JEE national exam held. Out of those 11 lakh, only around 1.5 lakh get qualified for admission in IITs. These 1.5 lakh kids are then put on a pedestal. To perform well and to secure high paying jobs. This pedestal isn’t just society’s doing, it is also the kids that put themselves on it. The pressure to maintain high GPAs, to attain good placements, to meet deadlines can often be very overwhelming.
A student life, especially those who are involved in educational programs that leave them with little time for themselves, makes an individual quite vulnerable to mental and emotional distress. The homesickness, the loneliness, the performance pressure slowing start to catch up if the individual does not discuss their stresses. Many even refrain from discussing their problems to their family thinking they might either be misunderstood or considered trivial. When this piles up, they find themselves unable to meet that pedestal, being unable to perform well because of all the fear and tension they have trapped themselves in. This does not only strip them if the joy of making friends and enjoying their youth but also gives them little to no time to get to know let alone celebrate themselves.
Nonetheless, these students mindlessly keep pushing themselves, scared of sharing, scared of troubling anyone else or letting them think they’re weak to seek for help, leaving themselves draining in the thoughts of loneliness, fear of the future, anxiety and stress. Many of these students are thus extremely prone to developing depression. The prolonged depression is what causes many to feel hopeless and see no meaning in leading a life any further. The stigma and unawareness surrounding mental health issues and talking about one’s daily life distress is the main cause of depression among these young minds.
However though the personal and sociological reasons highly affect the individuals , the educational system and environment can be equally as mentally straining. Besides a constant sense of competition the main issue among most educational systems is the lack of all around exposure provided to the students. They are so engrossed learning and memorizing codes, formulas and theorems that they often find themselves unable develop communication skills. This generally leads to many facing disappointment when it comes to placements. Other than that the lack of mental health services and awareness is considerably low as well as are the actions taken to prevent such mishaps further.
Another article discusses the rising issue of suicides in IITs and measures they are taking to address mental health challenges among students. Initiatives include wellness sessions, awareness campaigns, psychological assessments, and collaborations with external e-counselling services. IIT-Madras has initiated wellness sessions, wellness surveys, gatekeeper sessions, and an expanded counselor network. A recent IIT Council meeting discussed the need for increased access to psychological counseling services and reducing the pressure on students. IIT-Delhi is hosting a mentorship program targeting first-year students. IIT-Hyderabad runs a ‘Sunshine buddy program’ to provide support for peers. IIT-Roorkee has established a wellness center with specialized counselors and has not reported any suicides in the last five years. IIT-Guwahati offers mandatory counseling for newly admitted B.Tech students and runs campaigns to build a sense of community and academic support.
These initiatives reflect a growing awareness of the mental health challenges faced by students at IITs and efforts to provide necessary support and counseling. Although the government and the institutes are taking steps to provide mental health services, it is also important for people to realize to not take their emotions lightly, to realize the importance of communication and to share your thoughts. People with suicidal tendencies usually feel helpless and purposeless in life, they also feel alone in this battle. It is important for others around them to be aware of signs of suicidal tendencies, to make them know they aren’t alone.
Remember to be kind. Not just to the ones you love but to everybody and most importantly, yourself. You don’t have to have everything figured out. Life is not a race, it’s a journey. It’s a story to be lived, a book to be read. God forbid it’ll be quite an uninteresting story if it’s similar to every other one. Not everyone will have the same journey, the same job, the same pace to success or the same definition of success. As Grand master Oogway would say, “Yesterday is history, Tomorrow is a mystery, but Today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.” Cherish the present, live your present.
Lastly, if you’re a parent, please make yourself emotionally available to your kids. Your kid’s dreams sometimes may be different than yours and that is ok too. Maybe be your kid ends up earning less, but it is support and love from family and friends that keeps a person going. Yes it is important to have a comfortable lifestyle but at the end of the day, the will to live, the will to look forward to having more days in one’s life is what’s more important.
References
https://www.quora.com/How-many-people-write-IIT-JEE-every-year
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/iit-kgp-student-found-hanging-in-hostel-room
https://www.quora.com/Is-life-at-the-IIT-stressful-from-an-academic-point-of-view
