Intense competition and pressure of parents on their wards preparing for competitive exams are the main reasons for the rising number of suicides across the country, the Supreme Court.
Hearing a plea that sought regulation of the mushrooming coaching institutes and cited the data on student suicides, a bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti, however, expressed helplessness and said the judiciary cannot pass directions in such a scenario.
“These are not easy things. Pressure from parents is behind all these incidents. More than the children, it is the parents who are putting pressure on them. How can the court pass directions in such a scenario,” the bench told advocate Mohini Priya, appearing for the petitioner – Mumbai-based doctor Aniruddha Narayan Malpani.
Justice Khanna said, “Although, most of us will not want any coaching institute to be there, but look at the conditions of schools. There is intense competition and students have no other option but to go to these coaching institutes.” Referring to the 2020 data of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Priya said it highlights that around 8.2 per cent of students in the country die by suicide.