2023 Year Of Highest Student Suicides In Kota, Many Steps To Prevent Them

More than two lakh students move to Kota annually to prepare for competitive exams such as JEE for engineering and NEET for admission to medical colleges.

For Ramesh Kumar (name changed) from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh, 2023 was the worst year of his life. His family is still coming to terms with the loss of their elder son, who killed himself in a hostel room in Rajasthan's Kota where he had been preparing for the medical entrance exam for the past two years.

His son is among 26 coaching students who died by suicide this year in Kota, the highest-ever figure. Last year, the toll was 15.

The spate of student suicides also prompted the stakeholders to come up with desperate measures such as installing anti-hanging devices in hostel room fans and iron mesh in balconies and lobbies.